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THE  DUNKERS 


A  SOCIOLOGICAL  INTERPRETATION 


BY 


JOHN  LEWIS  GILLIN,  A.  M.,  B.  D. 


SUBMITTED  IN  PARTIAL  FULFILMENT  OF  THE  REQUIREMENTS 
FOR  THE  DEGREE  OF  DOCTOR  OF  PHILOSOPHY 

IN  THE 

FACULTY  OF  POLITICAL  SCIENCE, 
COLUMBIA  UNIVERSITY. 


new  Vork 

1906 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/dunkerssociologiOOgillrich 


THE  DUNKERS 


A  SOCIOLOGICAL  INTERPRETATION 


BY 


JOHN  LEWIS  GILLIN,  A.  M.,  B.  D. 


SUBMITTED  IN  PARTIAL  FULFILMENT  OF  THE  REQUIREMENTS 
FOR  THE  DEGREE  OF  DOCTOR  OF  PHILOSOPHY 

IN  THE 

FACULTY  OF  POLITICAL  SCIENCE, 
COLUMBIA  UNIVERSITY. 


l)iW  ¥01* 

1906 


G-S 


'&$' 


CONTENTS. 

Page 
Part  I.     The  Dunkers  in  Europe. 

Chapter  I. — Historical    Introduction 9 

Chapter  II. — The  Origin  of  the  Dunker  Doctrines 29 

Chapter  III. — The  Origin  of  the  Dunker  Organization 51 

Chapter  IV. — Development    and  Close  of  Movement  in 

Europe 63 

Part  II.     The  Dunkers  in  America. 

Chapter  I.  — Social  Conditions  in  America  bearing  on  Pop- 
ulation  -&8-  ^ 

1.  Political  Conditions  in  America,  with  Special- 
Reference  to    Pennsylvania . v&£""<?*j 

2.  Economic  Conditions  in  Pennsylvania 92 

3.  Religious  Conditions  in  Pennsylvania 99 

4.  Influence  of  these  Conditions  on  Demotic  Com- 
position of  the  Population  in  Pennsylvania 103 

Chapter  II. — The  Early  History  of  the  Dunkers  in  Amer- 
ica: Sociological  Interpretation 107 

1.  Origin  of  the  Dunker  church  in  America 107     (^ 

2.  Conrad  Beissel  and  his  Influence  on  the  Devel- 
opment of  the  Dunker  Church 112 

a.  Early  Period :  To  his  Separation  from  the 
Dunkers 112 

b.  Later  Period:    BeissePs  Separate  Commu- 
nity  126 

Chapter  III. — The  Expansion  of  the  Dunkers  in  America...  142 
Chapter  IV.— The  Unification  of  the  Dunkers  after  their 

Expansion  in   America 161 


CONTENTS 

1.  The  Social  Population. 

2.  The  Social  Mind. 

3.  The  Social  Organization. 

Chapter  V. — The  Liberalization  of  the  Dunkers.    185 

Chapter  VI. — Present  Conditions  in  the  Danker  Church.  .  .200 

1.  Numbers 200 

2.  The  Social  Mind  of  the  Dunkers 203 

3.  The  Social  Organization  of  the  Dunkers 220 

Chapter  VII. — Conclusion 226 

Bibliography 236 

Vita 239 


PREFACE. 


This  paper  is  an  attempt  to  apply  the  principles  of  sociological 
theory  to  the  interpretation  of  the  denomination  of  Christians 
variously  known  in  early  history  in  Germany,  sometimes  as 
Pietists,  becnuse  most  of  them  had  original^  been  Pietists,  of- 
ten as  Anabaptists  because  they  baptised  those  who  had  been 
christened  when  infants,  or,  again,  as  Dompelaers,  from  the  fact 
that  their  mode  of  baptism  was  immersion.  Today  they  are  pop- 
ularly known  by  the  various  names,  Dunkards,  Dun  kers,  Tunk- 
ers,  but  among  themselves  as  Brethren,  or  officially  as  German 
Baptist  Brethren.  Their  popular  cogneman  today,  Dunkers,  is 
simply  the  anglicised  form  of  the  German  noun,  derived  from 
the  old  German  verb  "tunken",  to  dip,  which  corresponds  to  the 
modern  German  verb  "taufen,"  and  means  what  our  anglicised 
Greek  word  "baptists"  means.  By  their  very  name,  therefore, 
the  D»inkers  are  to  be  classed  as  baptists. 

From  the  sociological  standpoint  they  must  be  classified  as  a 
voluntary,  cultural  association,  whose  purpose  was  the  promotion 
of  certain  doctrines  and  customs.  It  was  one  of  the  constituent 
societies  of  the  larger,  half  feudal,  half  civil,  social  unit,  the 
province  of  Wittgenstein.  Therefore,  from  the  standpoint  of 
the  historical  study  of  society,  the  Dunker  church  belongs  to 
that  stage  called  civilization,  or  Demogenic  Association,  as  Pro- 
fessor Giddings  has  called  it.  Its  origin  lay  within  the  military- 
religious  subdivision  of  that  stage,  the  greatest  part  of  its  his- 
tory within  the  subdivision  called  the  liberal-legal,  and  the  latter 
part  within  the  economic- ethical.  Nevertheless,  within  these  nar- 
row limits  historically,   the  Dunker  church  represents  in  its  his- 


6  PREFACE 

tory  all  the  steps  found  in  the  development  to  be  observed  in  the 
evolution  of  any  society. 

The  method  of  approach  might  have  been  strictly  sociological, 
were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  the  Dunker  church  began  its  devel- 
opment in  Europe,  but  was  interrupted  in  its  history  there,  and 
had  to  start  again  from  the  beginning  in  America.  Therefore, 
the  study  of  the  movement  in  Europe  will  be  largely  a  study  of 
social  origins,  and  only  in  a  minor  degree  of  social  development. 
On  the  other  hand,  while  the  origin  of  the  movement  in  Ameri- 
ca must  be  noticed,  because  it  originated  there  independently  of 
the  movement  in  Europe,  the  major  part  of  attention  will  be 
given  to  the  steps  in  the  evolution  of  the  Dunkers  in  social  popu- 
lation, social  mind  and  social  organization. 

The  multiplication  of  the  Dunker  population  from  a  small 
company  of  discouraged  members  fleeing  from  the  evil  conditions 
in  Crefeld,  Prussia,  and  settling  in  (jermantown,  Pennsylvania 
and  vicinity,  to  a  great  company  of  more  than  one  hundred 
thousand  people,  and  its  expansion  from  the  eastern  part  of 
Pennsylvania  along  the  natural  routes  of  travel  into  all  the  agri- 
cultural parts  of  the  United  States  will  be  traced,  and  the  causes 
noticed. 

Then  the  evolution  of  the  social  mind  of  this  sect  will  be 
traced  from  the  mental  and  practical  resemblance  that  was  based 
upon  the  like  response  to  stimulus,  which  living  under  similar 
circumstances  in  Germany  had  produced,  on  through  concerted 
volition,  which  resulted  in  the  purposive  organization. 

Then,  the  evolution  of  the  organization  will  be  traced  from 
the  first  spontaneous  association  of  the  simplest  kind  up  through 
the  various  stages  of  development  that  led  to  a  firmly  compacted 


PREFACE  7 

organization  with  an  increasingly  complex  composition  and  a 
clearly  defined  constitution. 

Lastly,  the  influence  upon  them  in  every  way  of  the  demo- 
cratic society  in  which  the  Dunkers  found  themselves,  as  the 
country  developed  about  them  and  population  increased,  and 
democratic  ideas  were  disseminated,  will  be  noticed. 

In  the  last  chapter  a  summary  of  the  processes  described  in 
the  previous  chapters,  will  be  made. 

Besides  the  particular  acknowledgments  made  in  the  foot  notes 
and  the  bibliography,  I  wish  to  acknowledge  special  indebtedness 
to  Professor  Giddings,  for  help  and  inspiration  received  from  his 
books  and  from  lectures  in  Columbia  University;  to  Professor  Rob- 
inson for  kindly  criticisms  on  certain  portions  of  the  paper;  to 
Professor  McGiffert  of  the  Union  Theological  Seminary  for  help 
received  from  his  lectures  on  the  period  of  church  history  in 
which  this  study  falls;  to  Professor  Martin  Grove  Brumbaugh,  of 
the  University  of  Pennsylvania  for  valuable  suggestions  as  to 
sources  and  literature  on  the  history  of  the  Dunkers;  and  to  Pro- 
fessor L.  L.  Garber,  Professor  of  English  in  Ashland  College, 
Ashland,  Ohio,  who  has  read  the  paper  in  manuscript,  and  given 
me  the  benefit  of  his  good  judgment  on  matters  of  literary  form 
and  statement. 


of  the 
UNIVERSITY 

or 


PART  I     THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 


CHAPTER  I 

Historical  Introduction 

Long  before  the  time  of  which  history  gives  us  any 
definite  knowledge,  various  races  of  men  had  been  meet- 
ing, perhaps  mingling,  in  the  valley  of  the  Rhine.  In- 
vestigations in  ethnology  and  anthropology  have  given  us 
hints  of  great  prehistoric  movements  in  western  Europe, 
which  resulted  in  the  congregation  there  of  several  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  people.  It  was  a  movement  similar,  in 
many  ways,  to  the  later  barbarian  migrations. 

There  are  evidences  that  the  neolithic  population  of, 
at  least,  western  Europe  was  composed  of  what  is  known 
as  the  Eurafrican  race,  which,  Sergi  thinks,  originated  in 
Africa  and  spread  over  Europe,  but  which,  others  think, 
originated  in  Europe,  and  thence  spread  across  to  Africa. 
This  Eurafrican  race  was  differentiated  into  two  branch- 
es, the  Mediterranean  and  the  Baltic,  both  longheaded, 
but  the  one  dark  and  the  other  light,  the  one  having 
spread  over  southern  and  western,  and  the  other  over 
northwestern  Europe.  * 

Some  time  later  a  wedge  of  population,  Aryans  in  lang- 
uage and  culture,  but  mainly  Eurafrican  in  physical  type, 
with  its  base  in  Russia  and  its  point  in  the  British  Isles, 
pushed  itself  through  between  the  Mediterranean  and 
Baltic  branches  of  the  Eurafrican  race,  and  imposed  its 
language  and  culture  upon  the  people  in  its  path,  or 
drove  them  to  the  fastnesses  of  the  mountains. 

*  Sergi,  "TheMediterraneaD  Race,"  passim. 


10  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE. 

It  is  probable  that  a  second  wave  of  Aryan  people  swept 
over  this  first  one,  but  with  its  main  direction  further 
north,  creating  the  Scandinavian  speech  and  culture,  but 
probably  affecting  the  population  of  the  Rhine  valley  only 
slightly. 

Later  still  there  was  a  third  invasion  of  Eurafricah 
Aryans,  who  imposed  their  language  and  culture  upon 
the  population  they  found,  and  possibly  amalgamated  with 
the  Euraf ricans  with  which  they  came  in  contact  in  the 
Rhine  countries.  These  spread  throughout  the  region 
assigned  by  Caesar  to  the  Celtae,  or  Gauls,  the  country 
between  the  Garonne  and  the  Seine  rivers. 

Finally,  there  was  probably  a  fourth  migration  of  Ar- 
yans, Eurasian  in  physical  type,  who  spread  west  from 
Hallstatt  throughout  the  region  between  the  Rhine,  on 
the  one  hand,  and  the  Marne  and  Seine,  on  the  other, 
which  was  assigned  by  Caesar  to  the  Belgae.  This  peo- 
ple had  become  mixed,  to  a  certain  extent,  with  the  Ger- 
manic peoples  beyond  the  Rhine.  * 

By  Caesar's  time  there  were  four  distinct  kinds  of  peo- 
ple in  western  Europe,  the  Aquatani,  southwest  of  the 
Garonne  river,  the  Belgae,  northeast  of  the  Marne  and 
the  Seine,  the  Celtae,  between  them,  and  the  Germani,  to 
the  east  of  the  Rhine,  t  These  represented  the  various 
peoples,  spoken  of  above,  that  had  swept  in  from  the  east 
and  south  one  after  the  other,  and  which  formed  the  basis 
of  the  modern  populations  of  western  Europe. 

According  to  Tacitus,  some  of  the  Germans,  before 
his  day,  had  crossed  the  Rhine  into  Gaul.  At  that  time 
probably  they  had  extended  east  to  the  Vistula.  The 
boundary  between  the  Germans  and  the  Roman  provinces 

*  Isaac  Taylor,  "Origin  of  the  Aryans,"  Chap.  2. 
t  "Gallic  War,"  1:  1. 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION.  u 

was  the  Rhine  and  the  Danube.  *  The  tribes  of  the 
Germans,  as  the  people  east  of  the  Rhine  were  called, 
pressed  by  the  Slavic  peoples  to  the  east,  or  moved  there- 
to by  the  growth  of  population  within  their  own  borders, 
surged  out  over  the  borders  into  the  Roman  provinces, 
south  and  west,  for  centuries.  On  the  other  hand,  both 
Caesar  and  Tacitus  tell  us  of  migrations  of  tribes  that 
lived  west  of  the  Rhine  bo  regions  east  of  that  river. 
These  movements  made  the  population  of  the  Rhine  dis- 
tricts very  complex.  During  the  barbarian  invasions  of 
the  Roman  Empire  this  complexity  was  still  further 
complicated.  \ 

Step  by  step,  owing  to  pressure  of  foreign  foes  and  the 
pressure  of  their  own  population,  the  tribes  were  con- 
solidated into  confederacies,  or  leagues,  temporarily, 
for  the  most  part,  for  the  purposes  of  defence,  until  in 
the  fifth  century,  under  the  leadership  of  the  Franks,  the 
various  tribes  east  and  west  of  the  Rhine  were  united 
into  a  single  nation,  which,  with  various  vicissitudes  of 
fortune,  continued  for  a  number  of  centuries.  The  Holy 
Roman  Empire,  which  developed  out  of  the  Frankish 
kingdom,  continued  to  be  the  one  bond  of  political  unity 
that  held  together  the  small  states  that  had  grown  up  on 
the  basis  of  the  former  tribal  divisions. 

One  must  not  conclude,  however,  that  the  political  un- 
ity acheived  through  the  extension  of  the  Frankish  rule, 
or  the  Holy  Roman  Empire,  served  to  effect  the  amalgama- 
tion of  the  various  elements  within  them,  to  any  great 
extent.  For  on  the  whole,  the  characteristics  of  the  rac- 
es that  occupied  western  Europe  in  the  days  of  Caesar 
and  Tacitus  can  be  traced  in  the  peoples  that  dwell  to- 

*  "Germania,"  ]. 

t  On  the  whole  subject  in  detail  see  Mommsen,  "History  of  Rome," 
Eng.  trans.  4:  255  f . 


IS  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE. 

day  in  their  respective  regions.  *  Naturally,  therefore, 
in  the  Rhine  valley,  the  Celt  and  the  Teuton  existed,  as 
they  still  exist,  side  by  side.  They  were  never  fused  in- 
to a  new  type,  as  were  the  Teutonic  Saxons  and  the  Celts 
of  Britain  by  the  coming  of  the  Danes. 

Furthermore,  the  inhabitants  of  the  Rhine  valley  were 
not  permanently  united  even  politically.  The  strong 
Frankish  kingdom  did  not  hold  together  long  enough  to 
completely  socialize  the  component  peoples.  With  the 
accession  of  a  line  of  weak  kings,  and  the  rise  of  feudal- 
ism it  broke  up  into  many  fragments.  Throughout  the 
Middle  Ages  western  Europe  was  practically  a  political 
chaos.  The  Protestant  Reformation  made  more  complete 
the  political  disintegration  of  the  already  tottering  Holy 
Roman  Empire  by  further  accentuating  the  social  heter- 
ogeneity. With  the  exception  of  France,  there  was  no 
strong  nation  in  western  Europe  down  to  the  time  of  Na- 
poleon, f 

Thus,  the  races  that  had  come  into  southwestern  Ger- 
many had  never  been  fused  into  a  single  people.  Polit- 
ical, economic  and  religious  conditions  at  the  beginning 
of  the  eighteenth  century  reflected  the  social  heterogene- 
ity of  the  population  of  those  regions  considered  as  a 
whole. 

The  nature  of  the  population  determined  the  nature 
and  development  of  the  social  mind.  If  into  any  popula- 
tion there  has  entered  a  variety  of  elements,  the  social 
mind  cannot  be  the  same  as  in  a  population  of  no,  or  only 
slight,  admixture. 

It  is  generally  recognized  that  the  Celtic  type  of  mind 
differs  from  the  Teutonic.     Instead  of  being  fused  into 

♦Ripley,  "Races  of  Europe,"  Chaps.  6,  18. 

t  Robinson,  "History  of  Western  Europe,"  p.  148  f ;  Bryce,  "Holy  Roman 
Empire,"  p.  14  f,  edition  of  1904. 


HISTORICAL  INTROD UCTION.  is 

a  new  type,  as  they  were  in  England  under  the  influence 
of  the  Dane,  here  in  the  Rhine  valley  we  find  them  both, 
side  by  side,  just  as  we  saw  the  two  races  were  there  in 
close  proximity,  without  having  been  amalgamated  into  a 
demotic  unity. 

In  like  manner,  the  different  varieties  of  social  mind 
among  the  Teutonic  tribes  in  western  Germany  were  not 
completely  fused.  Even  to  this  day  there  is  the  type  of 
mind  characteristic  of  the  Swiss  German,  the  Bavarian, 
the  Saxon,  the  Prussian,  etc.  Thus,  there  was  a  differ- 
ence of  social  mind  among  the  elements  of  the  population 
of  southwestern  Germany  as  a  whole,  analogous  to  the 
difference  in  race. 

All  these  different  tribes  and  races  responded  to  stim- 
ulus in  much  the  same  way.  The  migrations  show  this, 
as  well  as  many  of  their  common  customs.  Yet,  even 
here  there  was  a  difference  between  the  Celts  and  the 
Germans. 

In  mental  and  practical  resemblance  they  were  less 
alike.  For  example,  the  various  German  tribes  respond- 
ed more  slowly  in  motor  reactions  than  the  Celtic*  Their 
emotional  qualities,  intellectual  processes,  types  of  dis- 
position and  of  character  were  different  in  the  two  peo- 
ples, f  To  a  less  degree  this  was  true  of  the  various 
subdivisions  of  the  same  race.  It  is  most  significant 
that  the  Reformed  religion  won  in  just  that  part  of  Ger- 
many that  had  the  largest  admixture  of  Celtic  blood, — 
along  the  Rhine  from  Switzerland  north, — while  the  Luth- 
eran obtained  its  hold  on  the  more  thoroughgoing  Teu- 
tons. The  Reformed  faith  was  more  logical.  Its  propo- 
sitions were  the  outcome  of  deductive  reasoning  to  a 
greater  degree  than  the  Lutheran.     On  the  other  hand, 

*  Caesar,  "Gallic  War,"  2:  1;  3:  10,  19;  4:  5,  13,  etc. 

t  Ibid,  1:  1,  30,  31,  40,  especially,  6:  11-24;  Cf.  Tacitus,  "Germania,"28  f. 


U  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE. 

the  Lutheran  faith,  as  interpreted  by  Luther,  was  a  re- 
ligion rather  than  a  theology,  and  its  theological  state- 
ments were  the  result  of  an  inconsistent  compromise  be- 
tween Catholic  and  strictly  Protestant  elements,  based, 
not  on  the  logical  requirements  of  its  premises,  but  up- 
on the  practical  necessities  of  political  and  ecclesiastical 
policy. 

Furthermore,  it  was  in  the  Reformed  Church,  for  the 
most  part,  that  the  sects  arose.  The  cold  logic  of  its 
theological  positions  made  it  impossible  for  that  church 
to  tolerate  the  sectarians. 

Moreover,  the  Celts  and  the  Germans  recognized  the 
fact  that  they  were  different.  If  evidence  of  this  is 
required,  it  is  to  be  found  in  the  wars  that  the  Germans 
and  the  Belgae,  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  Germans  and 
the  Helvetii,  on  the  other,  were  continually  waging  against 
each  other  during  the  Roman  occupancy  of  Gaul.  *  These 
differences  and  the  mutual  recognition  of  them  by  each 
race  continued  down  to  our  period,  owing  to  the  fact  that 
there  was  no  strong  political  and  social  agency  to 
accomplish  the  assimilation  of  the  two  elements.  The 
continuance  of  petty  states,  instead  of  the  consolidation 
of  them  into  a  political  unity,  the  constantly  disturbed 
conditions  of  society  in  these  regions,  the  lack  of  good 
means  of  communication  and  the  mutual  jealousies  of 
rival  princes  and  parties,  ecclesiastical  and  political, 
made  for  the  continuance  of  a  clearly  recognized  con- 
sciousness of  kind. 

Naturally,  concerted  volition,  the  condition  of  mind 
prerequisite  to  co-operation,  was  impossible,  except  on  a 
few  lines,  among  the  people  of  southwestern  Germany  at 
the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century.  It  required  the 
stimulus  of  a  great  common  danger,  such  as  the  tyranny 

*Caesar,  "Gallic  War,"  1:1,  30,  31,  40. 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION.  15 

of  Ferdinand  II,  or  the  oppression  of  Louis  XIV,  to  bring 
them  to  a  common  purpose.  Thus,  the  evolution  of  the 
social  mind  of  southwestern  Germany,  as  a  whole,  was  not 
far  advanced.  Even  in  each  state  it  had  not  progressed 
beyond  the  stage  of  formal  likemindedness. 

In  like  manner,  the  social  organization  of  the  people  in 
the  Rhine  valley  in  Germany  was  incomplete.  As  there 
was  no  developed  social  mind  in  that  region  considered 
as  a  whole,  so  there  was  no  all-inclusive  social  organiza- 
tion. There  was  but  a  chaos  of  petty  states  nominally 
united  under  the  Holy  Roman  Empire.  The  consolida- 
tion of  the  states  of  the  region  occurred  as  late  as  1870. 

Moreover,  in  each  state  the  organization  had  developed 
only  as  far  as  might  be  expected  from  the  description 
given  of  the  development  of  a  social  mind. 

Where  likemindedness  is  sympathetic,  or  formal, 
rather  than  rational,  and  where,  consequently,  the  social 
action  is  impulsive,  whatever  social  organization  exists 
is  coercive  in  its  relation  to  the  individual.  This  gener- 
alization is  well  illustrated  in  the  social  organization  at 
this  time.  Prussia,  the  Netherlands,  and  Wittgenstein 
were  the  only  states  that  allowed  freedom  of  organization 
and  individual  liberty  of  religious  opinion.  Only  such 
religious  organizations  were  permitted  in  other  parts  of 
the  country  as  were  not  at  variance  with  the  religion  of 
the  state.  A  coercive  attitude  was  assumed  by  most 
rulers  towards  the  individual  and  each  constituent 
society.  The  task  at  hand  was  to  unify  the  discordant 
elements  of  the  population.  The  governing  classes  were 
trying  to  unify  their  society  by  enforcing  uniformity  in 
religion  and  politics.  It  was  this  coercion  in  religion 
that  gave  birth  to  the  sectarian  movements.  For- 
getting the  interests  of  the  governed,  and  imagining 
that  their  own  interests  must  be  the  interests  of  all,  the 


16  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE. 

rulers  forced  a  reaction  against  their  policies  by  the 
coerced  classes,  who  were  just  now  coming  to  a  conscious- 
ness of  their  rights. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  society  in  the  upper  part  of 
the  Rhine  valley,  as  a  whole,  in  the  period  in  which  this 
study  falls.  The  population  was  made  up  of  elements 
that  had  come  down  from  earlier  times,  which  had  never 
been  amalgamated  into  a  racial  unit.  The  social  mind  of 
the  region  as  a  whole  existed  only  in  its  elements.  There 
was  very  little  common  social  purpose,  and  the  only 
semblance  of  a  social  organization  was  the  Holy  Roman 
Empire.  Of  social  organizations  of  a  smaller  scope  there 
was  a  multitude.  But  these  had  not  developed  any 
further  than  the  military- religious  stage  of  civilization. 
This  monograph  therefore,  is  a  study  of  the  origin  and 
development  of  a  constituent  society  in  an  integral  society 
that  had  arrived  at  the  stage  of  development  known  as  the 
military-religious  stage. 

In  order  to  understand  the  early  development  of  this 
society  it  will  be  well  to  look  more  carefully  at  some  of 
the  social  conditions  that  prevailed  in  the  Rhine  Valley 
at  the  time  of  its  origin. 

Three  phases  of  these  conditions  were  of  special  im- 
portance: (1)  the  reaction  against  the  Protestant  scho- 
lasticism of  the  period;  (2)  the  general  character  of  the 
sects  of  that  time;  and  (3)  the  local  conditions  which 
existed  in  the  Rhine-lands  and  stimulated  emigration. 

1.    The  Reaction  Against  Scholasticism. 

Out  of  the  conflicts  of  the  Reformation  two  distinct 
tendencies  emerged  among  the  Protestants.  Both  were 
found  in  the  Catholic  church  before  Luther ;  both  were  to 
be  found  even  in  Luther   himself.     The  one  was  the 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION.  17 

scholastic,  the  other  the  mystical.  The  latter  became 
identified  with  Pietism  in  our  period,  while  the  former 
was  characteristic  of  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed  ortho- 
doxy. Luther's  theory  of  justification  by  faith  is  any- 
thing but  scholastic.  But,  strange  to  say,  Luther, 
especially  in  his  later  days,  laid  himself  open  to  the 
charge  of  confusing  correct  doctrine  with  faith.  He 
does  not  explicity  identify  saving  faith  and  orthodoxy, 
but  in  order  to  oppose  successfully  the  claims  of  the 
Catholics  in  regard  to  the  authority  of  tradition,  he  was 
led  to  emphasize  the  authority  of  Scripture,  and,  in  order 
to  defend  himself,  on  the  other  hand,  against  the  fanat- 
ical" claims  of  the  extremists  among  the  Protestants,  he 
felt  it  necessary  to  oppose  to  their  claims  the  Bible  as 
the  standard  of  doctrine.  *  This  was  the  easier  for  him 
to  do,  because  apparently  he  was  not  conscious  that  in 
so  doing  he  was  giving  utterance  to  anything  inconsist- 
ent with  his  of  t- repeated  assertion  that  the  Word  of  God 
is  not  a  book,  but  the  message  of  God's  forgiving  love  in 
Christ.  Yet  from  the  point  of  view  of  his  controlling 
principle,  this  was  a  mistake,  and  opened  the  way  for  his 
followers  to  identify  correct  doctrines  with  saving  faith. 
In  the  later  editions  of  his  Loci  Communes,  Melancthon 
expresses  the  same  view.  It  is  a  well-known  fact  also 
that  each  edition  of  the  Loci  became  more  scholastic. 
This  scholastic  orthodoxy  came  to  official  expression  in 
the  Lutheran  church  in  the  Formula  of  Concord  (1577.) 
In  the  following  years  such  theologians  as  John  Gerhard, 
Calovius  and  Quenstedt  brought  it  to  its  complete  develop- 
ment. The  Scriptures  were  no  longer,  as  they  were  with 
Luther,  primarily  helps  in  one's  Christian  experience, 
but  "dicta  probantiav  for  the  doctrines  as  set  forth  in 
the  confessions.     Nay,   more,  they  had  in  themselves  a 

*See  Luther's  Works,  Erlangen  editioD.     7:34 


18  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE. 

magical  power,  similar  to  what  was  supposed  to  reside  in 
the  bread  and  wine  of  the  Eucharist,  viz.,  the  power  to 
regenerate  the  soul  of  him  who  read  them.  *  The  Form- 
ula of  Concord  was  now  looked  upon  as  a  complete  body 
of  divinity,  assent  to  which  constituted  saving  faith. 
The  duty  of  reverent  theologians  was  to  comment  upon 
it  and  explain  it,  but  not  to  change  it.  For  purposes  of 
interpretation  it  stood  above  the  Bible,  for  it  contained 
the  complete  body  of  saving  truth,  while  the  Bible  was 
used  only  to  confirm  it  by  furnishing  proof  texts,  f  Thus 
a  dogmatism  far  more  narrow  and  oppresssive  than  that 
of  the  Catholic  church  was  fastened  upon  the  Protestants. 

The  same  thing  took  place  in  the  Reformed  church. 
It  was  all  the  easier  there,  because  Zwingli  was  a  human- 
ist to  begin  with,  and  was  not  so  great  a  religious  genius 
as  Luther.  Little  by  little  the  scholastic  method  had 
been  growing  in  favor  with  the  Reformed  theologians.  In 
their  controversies  with  the  Socinians  and  the  Arminians 
and  with  the  theologians  of  the  school  at  Samur,  they 
pushed  their  dogmatism  to  as  extreme  a  form  as  the 
Lutheran  thelogians.  All  the  discussions  were  scholastic 
in  method.  This  scholastic  dogmatism  found  official 
sanction  in  the  Canons  of  the  Synod  of  Dort  (1619),  and  in 
the  Formula  Concensus  Helvetica  (1675).  So  it  came 
about  that  henceforth  in  this  branch  of  Protestantism, 
orthodoxy  was  considered  a  condition  of  salvation. 

The  results  in  both  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed  church- 
es were  the  same.  Attention  was  directed  to  pure  doc- 
trine to  the  partial  disregard  of  the  Christian  life.     The 

*  See  Dorner's  "History  of  Protestant  Theology,"  Eng.  trans.  2:203  f. 

t  See  especially,  Harnack,  "History  of  Dogma,"  Eng,  trans.  7:168  f.  I 
have  received  the  most  help  on  this  subject  from  the  unpublished  lectures 
of  Prof.  A.  C.  McGiffert  of  Union  Theological  Seminary,  of  New  York. 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION.  19 

emphasis  on  orthodoxy  served  to  exhaust  in  fruitless  con- 
troversy energies  that  should  have  been  applied  to  quick- 
ening the  moral  life  of  the  people.  It  was  heresy,  not 
lack  of  spirituality,  not  immorality,  for  which  men  were 
excommunicated.  Conduct  was  less  important  than  creed. 
The  natural  tendency  of  this  emphasis  was  to  stifle  in 
both  leaders  and  people  the  fresh,  evangelical  spirit  of 
the  Reformation.  Religious  and  ethical  considerations 
had  to  give  way  to  the  all  important  question  of  ortho- 
doxy. If  men  were  good,  it  was  because  of  other  factors. 
Accordingly  there  resulted  a  widespread  deadness  in  the 
churches. 

Another  result  was  that  Christian  love  and  tolerance 
could  not  develop.  Zeal  for  orthodoxy  had  as  its  corollary 
hatred  of  heresy  and  the  persecution  of  heretics.  For 
example,  because  of  the  slight  difference  of  doctrine  be- 
tween them  as  to  the  ureal  presence"  of  the  body  and 
blood  of  Christ  in  the  Eucharist,  the  Lutherans  and  the 
Reformed  were  at  emnity  at  a  time  when  there  was  every 
reason  for  them  to  unite  against  a  common  foe.  For  the 
same  reasons  unseemly  quarrels  took  place  within  each 
of  the  two  great  Protestant  bodies.  Within  the  Luth- 
eran church  the  Philippists  and  the  strict  Lutherans  di- 
vided on  questions  of  doctrine,  with  the  result  that  the 
strict  Lutherans  drew  up  the  Formula  of  Concord  against 
their  enemies  the  Philippists.  Within  the  Reformed 
church  the  orthodox  party  was  set  over  against  the  Ar- 
minians  and  the  theologians  of  Samur.  Besides  these 
main  divisions  in  Protestantism,  there  were  minor  ones, 
which  stood  out  with  a  similar  zeal  against  the  claims  of 
the  orthodox  parties.  Indeed  so  important  was  ortho- 
doxy considered,  that  persecution  became  a  common  oc- 
currence.    For  no  other  reason  than  refusal  to  assent  to 


20  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE. 

certain  theological  dogmas,  thousands  of  men  and  women 
/  were  killed  as  heretics.  * 

Against  this  scholastic  theology  of  the  seventeenth 
century  two  movements  developed.  The  one  was  Pietism ; 
the  other  Illuminism.  With  the  latter  we  are  not  con- 
cerned here,  as  it  was  a  later  development,  and  did  not 
affect  the  circle  of  society  we  purpose  to  study.  On  broad 
lines,  it  may  be  said  that  Illuminism  was  a  phenomena  of 
the  upper  classes ;  Pietism  of  the  lower.  The  former  was 
the  protest  of  the  educated;  the  latter  of  the  masses. 
Pietism  was  the  product  of  the  combination  of  the  mysti- 
cal tendency  that  the  Reformation  brought  over  from 
Catholicism,  f  with  the  practical,  individualistic  spirit  of 
the  Reformation.  %  It  had  long  been  felt  by  many  peo- 
ple that  there  is  something  more  in  religion  than  a  harsh 
and  barren  dogmatism.  This  feeling  became  more  mark- 
ed as  orthodoxy  became  more  pronounced  in  the  church- 
es. The  religious  spirit  awakened  by  the  Reformation 
could  not  be  satisfied  with  the  intellectualism  of  the  theo- 
logians. 

Moreover,  there  had  been  lacking  from  the  very  first 
days  of  the  Protestant  revolt,  both  in  Germany  and  in 
Switzerland,  parties  with  strong  separatistic  leanings. 
These  parties  found  in  the  scholastic  dogmatism  of  the 
churches  additional  reasons  for  separation  from  them. 
They  represented  the  protest  of  the  people  of  that  day 
against  the  growing  Scholasticism.  And  when  to  all  this 
is  added  the  influence  of  the  spirit  of  the  modern  age, 

*  See  the  accounts  of  the  persecutions  of  the  Mennonites  in  their  great 
"Der  Bluetige  Schau-Platz,  oder  Martyrer-Spiegel."  In  this  day.  it  is 
hard  for  one  to  believe  thatgood  men  and  women  could  have  been  so  cruel. 

t  Ritschlhas  the  credit  of  making  this  clear  in  his  "Geschichte  d.  Pietis- 

mus." 

%  Later  it  combined  with  Separatism,  which  was  also  a  popular  movement 
against  the  scholastic  dogmatism  of  the  time. 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION.  21 

the  strength  of  the  reaction  against  Scholasticism  is  eas- 
ily understood.  Scholasticism  was  mediaeval  and  its 
presence  in  the  Protestant  churches  was  a  survival.  It 
satisfied  neither  the  religious,  nor  the  scientific  needs  of 
the  day.  Against  its  pretensions  to  satisfy  the  former, 
Pietism  and  Separatism,  in  large  part,  were  revolts. 

2.     G en  eral  Character  of  the  Protestant  Sec  ts. 

Very  early  in  the  history  of  Protestantism  sects  had 
begun  to  appear.  In  fact,  they  had  existed  in  Catholic- 
ism before  the  Protestant  revolt.  The  Protestant  sects 
originated  partly  in  reaction  against  Scholasticism,  and 
partly  as  a  result  of  the  belief  in  the  freedom  of  the  in- 
dividual conscience,  a  belief  that  was  involved  in  the 
Lutheran  Reformation.  In  the  early  period  of  Protestant- 
ism, the  separatists  were  simply  ultra-Protestants.  But 
when  Scholasticism  had  fettered  the  living  religious  life 
in  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed  churches,  the  .separatists 
discovered  in  an  emphasis  upon  conduct,  over  against  the 
emphasis  of  the  orthodox  upon  dogma,  a  new  and  might- 
ier weapon  of  defense  against  the  attacks  of  the  latter. 
Among  these  separatistic  sects  those  that  have  an  inter- 
est for  us  are  the  Anabaptists  of  Zurich  who  organized 
themselves  while  Zwingli  was  still  alive,  under  the  lead- 
ership of  Grebel,  Elaurock,  Manz  and  Hubmeier;  the 
Mennonites,  a  group  composed  of  the  Anabaptists  of  the 
Netherlands,  who  came  under  the  influence  of  Menno 
Symons  after  1536;  the  Labadists,  who  derive  their  name 
from  Jean  de  Labadie,  and  originated  in  1668;  the  Pietists, 
who  were  not  a  sect,  but  represented  a  tendency  that 
originated  with  Philip  Jacob  Spener  in  1670,  when  he 
began  to  hold  in  his  Lutheran  congregation  Collegia 
Pietatis,  or  meetings  where  simple  Bible  truths  were  dis- 
cussed for  the  purpose  of  encouraging  practical  piety; 


22  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  E  UR  OPE. 

the  Quakers,  ascribing  their  origin  to  George  Fox  an 
English  weaver's  son,  who  spread  to  Holland  and  Ger- 
many; and,  lastly,  the  Dunkers. 

All  of  these  were  Separatists,  except  the  Pietists,  and 
consequently  were  organized  bodies.  Although  their 
principles  tended  in  that  direction,  in  the  beginning  the 
Pietists  were  not  sectarians,  but  counted  among  their 
numbers  Catholics,  Lutherans  and  Reformed.  Later 
many  of  these  joined  the  different  bodies  of  separatists, 
while  the  rest  of  them  united  with  the  state  churches.  * 

Each  of  these  sects  had  its  own  peculiar  doctrines,  but 
all  had  certain  common  characteristics.  In  general  they 
agreed  on  the  following:  (1)  the  rejection  of  infant  bap- 
tism; (2)  the  necessity  of  regeneration;  (3)  the  separation 
of  the  "regenerate"  from  the  "unregenerate"  in  matters 
of  conduct,  such  as  dress,  amusements  and  education; 
(4)  emphasis  upon  practical  piety  rather  than  upon  cor- 
rect doctrine;  (5)  opposition  to  certain  policies  of  the 
state,  such  as,  armed  self-defence,  the  use  of  the  power 
of  the  state  in  the  interest  of  the  church,  the  union  of 
church  and  state,  the  requirement  of  the  state  that  the 
citizens  bear  arms,  take  the  civil  oath,  and  hold  office 
under  the  government;  (6)  opposition  to  the  use  of  force 
in  self  defence  by  the  individual;  (7)  the  theory  of  a 
"Bible-Christianity, "  that  is,  that  the  organization  of  the 
church  and  the  life  of  the  individual  Christian  should  be 
modelled  upon  the  Bible,  or,  as  the  best  interpretation  of 
the  Bible,  upon  the  organization  of  the  early  church,  and 
the  life  of  the  early  Christians ;  (8)  opposition  to  the  state 
churches  on  the  ground  that  they  were  a  spiritual  "Baby- 
lon. ' '  f     These  characteristics  were  in  part  the  result  of 

*See  "Chronicon  Ephratense"  Eng.  trans,  p.  1, 

f  All  these  were  not  true  of  Pietism  in  the  days  of  Spener,  and  many  of 
them  were  never  true  of  it.     Spener  often  defended  the  Lutheran  church 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUQT/ON.  23 

a  reaction  against  the  scholastic  dogmatism  of  the  church- 
es, in  part  the  result  of  an  extreme  radicalism,  and  in 
part,  the  result  of  a  reaction  against  the  intolerable  social 
conditions  about  them.  These  sects  were  recruited  for  the 
most  part  from  the  lower  classes  of  society,  from  the  com- 
paratively uneducated.  Consequently,  their  doctrines 
have  to  do  more  with  conduct  than  with  dogmas,  and  they 
are  interested  in  church  organization  and  church  rites 
rather  than  in  theology.  * 

3.  Conditions  in  Germany  that  Favored  Emigration. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  conditions 
in  the  German  states  along  the  Rhine  favored  the  emi- 
gration of  the  lower  classes  of  the  population.  In  the 
contests  between  France  and  the  other  states  of  Europe, 
with  which  Louis  XIV  was  engaged  in  war  during  most 
of  his  reign,  the  Rhine  countries  were  the  battle  ground. 
Across  them  marched  and  counter-marched  the  contend- 
ing armies.  On  the  one  side  of  them  was  France,  a 
united  nation  with  Louis  XIV  at  its  head,  a  king  of  no 
mean  abilities,  and  of  boundless  ambition.  On  the  other 
side  was  the  Holy  Roman  Empire,  so  weak  that  it  could 
not  be  depended  on  to  defend  its  members  against  the 
aggressions  of  Louis,  while  the  individual  German  states 
were  so  small  that  they  could  not  protect  themselves. 

Moreover,  there  was  no  effective  German  unity.  The  em- 
pire was  but  a  loose  federation,  without  efficient  common 
tribunals,  and  without  the  ability  to  make  the  uppity  effec- 
tive by  coercion,     ^here  were  some,  three  hundred  small 

against  the  charge  of  being  "Babylon,"  and  upheld  the  claim  of  the  state 
to  use  its  power  to  defend  itself  and  to  help  the  church.  See  "Bedencken" 
1 :341.  Nevertheless,  there  was  present  in  Pietism  the  tendency  to  Separa- 
tism. 

*  This  was  true  of  the  Pietistic  movememeDt  in  general.  See  Dorner, 
History  of  Protestant  Theology,"  2:205  f. 


U  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUPORE. 

German  states  between  the  Alps  and  the  Baltic,  each  of 
which  was  practically  independent  of  the  others.  Mutual 
jealousies  prevented  their  unification,  or  even  their  co- 
operation, except  in  the  presence  of  a  great  common 
danger.  *  They  either  were  at  the  mercy  of  a  strong 
power,  like  France,  or  were  mere  pawns  in  the  game  of 
politics  that  France  and  the  Empire  were  constantly  play- 
ing. For  example,  the  Palatinate  was  ravaged  by  the 
armies  of  France  in  1674  in  order  to  prevent  the  enemies 
of  Louis, — the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  and  the  Emper- 
or,— from  using  its  resources  to  supply  their  troops 
against  him.  In  1680,  without  further  reason  than  his  own 
ambition,  Louis  seized  the  free  city  of  Strasburg,  and 
took  possession  of  some  places  in  Alsace,  Lorain e  and 
France  Comte.  In  the  same  year  he  began  that  series  of 
political  crimes  that  he  called  "reunions,"  whose  purpose 
was  to  add  to  France  parts  of  the  territories  of  these 
Rhine  countries. 

In  1685  the  Simmern  line  of  Palatinate  rulers  died  out 
with  the  death  of  Elector  Karl.  It  was  succeeded  by  the 
Neuburg  line  in  the  person  of  the  Elector  Philip  William. 
This  gave  Louis  an  opportunity  to  interfere  in  the  affairs 
of  the  Palatinate.  He  at  once  set  up  a  claim  for  Elizabeth 
Charlotte,  a  sister  of  the  last  Simmern  Elector  Palatine. 
She  had  married  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  the  brother  of 
Louis  XIV,  but  at  the  time  of  her  marriage  had  signed 
away  all  her  feudal  rights  to  the  Palatinate,  and  now  was 
most  bitterly  opposed  to  the  claims  made  in  her  behalf  b}^ 
Louis.  The  new  Elector  was  forced  to  appeal  for  aid  to 
the  Empire.  The  emperor  not  being  able  single-handed 
to  checkmate  Louis,  formed  the  League  of  Augsburg  in 
1686,  with  himself,  the  kings  of  Spain  and  Sweden,  as 

*  See  Bryce,  "The  Holy  Roman  Empire,"  1904  ed.,  p.  394  f.     Henderson, 
UA  Short  History  of  Germany,"  2;  219  f. 


HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION. 


25 


priuees  of  the  Empire,  the  Electors  of  Saxony  and  Ba- 
varia, the  Circles  of  Swabia,  Franconia,  Upper  Saxony 
and  Bavaria,  the  Elector  Palatine  and  the  Duke  of  Hol- 
stein  as  its  signers.  In  1688  Louis  decided  to  attack  the 
Palatinate,  and  thus  strike  terror. into  the  hearts  of  his 
enemies.  The  devastation  of  the  region  was  one  of  the 
most  brutal  on  record.  A  hundred  thousand  people  were 
forced  to  leave  their  homes,  large  numbers  of  whom 
perished;  more  than  forty  towns  and  villages  were  de- 
stroyed, and  the  fertile  Valley  was  turned  into  a  desert.  * 
Periodical  devastation  of  the  Palatinate  continued  until 
Louis  made  peace  at  Ryswick  in  1697.  In  this  treaty 
there  was  inserted  a  clause,  since  famous  as  the 
"Ryswick  clause,"  which  resulted  in  the  Protestants 
being  despoiled  of  their  churches  in  the  interests  of  the 
Catholics,  and  the  beginning  of  religious  strife  that  lasted 
for  years.  This  war  was  followed  by  that  of  the  Spanish 
Succession  (1701-1713).  The  Rhine-countries  during  the 
greater  part  of  these  prolonged  conflicts, — indeed,  since 
the  opening  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War, — were  between 
the  upper  and  nether  mill-stones. 

Furthermore,  the  internal  political  conditions  of  these 
small  German  states  bore  heavily  upon  the  common 
people.  In  many  cases  their  officials  were  in  the  employ 
of  Louis  XIV,  or  of  some  other  great  potentate.  The 
princes  for  the  most  part  ruled  solely  with  reference  to 
their  own  pleasures,  rather  than  to  the  welfare  of  their 
subjects.  The  taxes  levied  upon  the  peasants  were  so 
burdensome  that  they  could  scarcely  make  a  living,  while 
the  ruler  lived  in  a  luxury  patterned  after  that  of  the 
French  court.  There  was  no  sucn  thing  as  political 
liberty  in  the  modern  sense.     The  people  had  no  part  in 

(  *  See  Dyer  and  Hassel,  "Modern  Europe,"  4:55  f.  And  especially  Haeus- 
ser  "Geschichte  d.  rheinischen  Pfalz."  2:766  f. 


M  THE  DUNKBRS  IN  EUROPE 

the  government.  Feudalism  had  broken  down,  but  no 
strong  government  had  yet  risen  to  reduce  the  chaos  to 
order,  and  to  lay  the  foundations  of  political  liberty. 

The  political  situation  was  complicated  by  the  intimate 
relation  of  the  state  and  the  church.  Since  the  Peace  of 
Augsburg  (1555),  in  theory  the  religion  of  the  prince  had 
determined  the  religion  of  the  country.  This  gave  rise 
to  many  political  disturbances.  The  strife  between  Cath- 
olics and  Protestants  was  still  keen.  Each  side  was  con- 
stantly looking  for  an  opportunity  to  make  inroads  into 
the  territory  of  the  other.  The  religious  situation  was 
complicated  further  by  the  fact  that  there,  was  the  same 
reciprocal  hostility  between  the  Lutherans  and  the  CaL- 
vinists  as  existed  between  the  Protestants  and  the  Cath- 
olics. The  Palatinate  had  been  Lutheran  until  Freder- 
ick HI,  (1559-1576),  joined  the  Reformed  church.  His 
successor,  Louis  VL,  (1576-1583),  reintroduced  the  Luth- 
eran faith,  while  John  Gasimir,  (1583-1592),  was  Reform- 
ed. The  Neuburg  line  (1685-)  was  Catholic.  Up  to  this 
time  the  Palatinate  had  been  a  refuge  for  the  persecuted 
elsewhere.  *  The  first  elector  of  the  Neuburg  line,  Phil- 
ip William,  was  tolerant  in  religion,  but  he  was  unable  to 
preserve  his  Protestant  subjects  from  the  intrigues  of 
the  Catholics.  His  son  and  successor,  John  William,  was 
under  the  influence  of  the  Jesuits,  and  began  a  systemat- 
ic oppression  of  the  Protestants,  which  ended  in  the 
Catholics  getting  possession  of  most  of  the  Protestant 
churches  and  in  their  driving  the  greater  part  of  the 
Protestant  people  into  exile.  The  same  policy  was  adopt- 
ed by  the  next  Elector,  Charles  Phillip  (1716-1742).  t 
These  rulers  were  simply  following  the  fashion  set  by 

*  Kuhns,  "German  mad  Swiss  Settlements  of  Pennsylvania,"  Ch.  1  gives 
a  very  good  outline  of  the  religious  conditions  in  the  Palatinate  at  this  time. 

t  For  details  see  Haensser,  "Geschichte  d.  rhein.  Plata."  2: 7861 


UNIVERSITY 

OF 

HISTORICAL  INTRODUCTION  27 

Louis  XIV.  His  persecutions  of  the  Huguenots  had 
forced  more  than  two  hundred  thousand  to  emigrate.  In 
all  these  small  states,  opposition  to  the  orthodoxy  of  the 
Lutheran  and  Reformed  churches  had  resulted  in  the 
formation  of  sects  which  were  persecuted  by  the  rulers 
at  the  instance  of  the  national  churches.  For  example, 
the  Swiss  Mennonites,  who  had  enjoyed  toleration  with- 
in the  Palatinate  up  to  the  time  of  the  Catholic  Neuburg 
rulers,  were  now  forced  to  flee.  These  persecutions  in 
the  states  along  the  Rhine  stimulated  emigration  among 
the  persecuted.  They  made  settled  and  quiet  industry 
impossible.  Life  was  insecure,  employment  precarious, 
and  suspicions  were  rife.  These  persecutions  had  made 
the  hostility  between  the  classes  of  society  more  marked, 
and  destroyed  that  feeling  of  unity  which  makes  people 
strong,  and  holds  men  to  their  native  land.  In  the  per- 
iod of  Huguenot  persecutions,  many  of  the  latter  had 
found  religious  liberty  in  Prussia,  England  and  America. 
This  emigration  had  set  the  example  that  was  soon  to  be 
imitated  by  many  other  sects.  As  early  as  1683,  the  per- 
secuted Mennonites  had  begun  to  migrate  to  Penn's  New 
Colony.  Already  in  1677  Penn  had  been  on  the  Continent 
in  the  interests  of  the  Quakers.  From  1683  he  and  his 
agents  were  at  work  in  the  states  along  the  Rhine,  ad- 
vertising the  religious  freedom  of  his  colony.  In  this 
way  the  influence  of  persecution  in  stimulating  emigra- 
tion was  supplemented  by  the  positive  inducement  of  the 
promises  of  religious  liberty  in  the  New  World. 

These  political  and  religious  conditions  made  economic 
distress  inevitable.  The  constant  wars  had  drawn  off 
the  men  from  industry  to  battle.  Some  never  returned; 
some  were  disabled  for  life.  The  devastation  of  the  Pala- 
tinate in  1688  had  made  a  hundred  thousand  beggars,  and 
ruined  the  industry  of  the  country  for  years.     The  Pala- 


28  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

tinate  is  only  the  most  notable  example  of  what  happened 
all  along  the  Rhine  valley.  *  Commerce  was  dead,  for 
war  severed  the  trade  routes,  and  industry  was  at  a  stand- 
still. Agriculture  was  a  long  time  in  recovering.  The 
peasantry  was  burdened  with  most  oppressive  taxes, 
and  in  addition  subjected  to  feudal  services,  f  Further- 
more, there  had  been  a  series  of  bad  crops,  and  the  hard 
winter  of  1708  killed  the  vines. 

Altogether  the  situation  in  the  Rhine  countries  at  the 
opening  of  the  eighteenth  century  was  such  as  to  promote 
the  emigration  of  the  lower  classes.  Unstable  political 
conditions,  religious  intolerance,  economic  disasters  at 
home,  and  glowing  promises  of  a  land  where  all  these 
conditions  were  reversed  had  the  effect  of  loosening  the 
ties  that  bound  the  Germans  to  their  native  land,  and  of 
stimulating  that  passion  for  wandering  that  has  been  so 
often  noticed  as  a  characteristic  of  this  people,  in  spite 
of  their  intense  love  of  home  and  Fatherland. 

♦See  the  evidences  in  Sachse,   "The  Fatherland,"  in  Pennsylvania  Ger- 
man Society  Proceedings,  7: 124. 

t  See  Kuhns,  "German  and  Swiss  Settlements,  etc,"  p.  20. 


CHAPTER  II. 


The  Dunkers'l'Doctrines:u  Their  Origin. 

The  Dunker  church  was  organized  to  realize  certain 
ideals  that  had  taken  shape  in- (the  mind  of  Alexander 
Mack.?  This  organizationGmade  necessary  the  further 
development  of  certain  doctrines  and  the  modification  of 
the  reasons  for  holding  the  original  doctrines.  That  is  to 
say,  the  composite  nature  of  the  population  of  southwest- 
ern Germany,  determined  the  origin  of  certain  doctrines 
which,  from  the  nature  of  the  circumstances  that  sug- 
gested them,  had  to  do  with  church  and  state.  That  fact 
determined  that  the  ideals  should  be  social  in  their  nature. 
In  turn  these  ideals  made  it  necessary  to  have  a  society 
in  which  they  could  be  realized.  G  However,  no  sooner  did 
such  a  society,'-  exist,  j. than  there  arose  the*? necessity 
of  defending,  its  existence,  and  of  unifying  its  mem- 
bership upon  a  policy  and  a  faith.  These  exigencies 
demanded^  for  the  society*  anj  organic!(and  statute>w, 
the  authority  of  which  was  unquestioned  by  oppon- 
ents, and  which  could  serve  as  the  basis  of  unification 
for  the -society.  This  law  was  found  in  the  Scriptures  of 
the  New  Testament  interpreted  by  the  history  of  the  primi- 
tive church,  as  that  history  was  then  understood.  The 
necessity  of  defending  the  doctrines  held  in  opposition  to 
those  of  the  state  churches,  and  of  unifying  the  new  soci- 
ety made  necessary  the  tremendous  emphasis  upon  obedi- 
ence that  is  the  Alpha  and  the  Omega  of  Mack's  thought. 
Therefore,  in  order  to  account  for  the  origin  of  the  Dunk- 
er church  it  will  be^  necessary  to  understand  how  the 
ideals  that  demanded  its  existence  came  into  being. 

(a)  The  Doctrines: 

What,  then,  were  these  doctrines?    Naming  them  in  the 
order  of  their  probable  origin  they  were  as^follows:— 


SO  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

1.  The  Christian  life  is  not  an  unethical  life  of  correct 
opinion  on  matters  theological,  but  a  life  of  piety,  i.  e.,  of 
good  works,  begun  by  obedience  to  the  command  of  Christ 
to  be  baptized,  or,  at  least,  the  wish  to  obey  that  com- 
mand. Baptism  is  followed  by  regeneration.  This  life 
of  piety  is  continued  by  obedience  to  all  the  command- 
ments of  Christ.  Here  Mack,  the  only  Dunker  writer 
from  the  early  period,  does  not  define  closely. 

2.  This  position  naturally  includes  the  Dunker  doc- 
trine of  simplicity  of  life,  especially  of  dress. 

3.  The  doctrine  of  Christian  perfection  was  not  held  as 
firmly  by  Mack  as  by  Hochmann  and  many  others  of  his 
friends.  However,  he  believes  in  it  as  a  dogma  taught 
by  Scriptures.* 

4.  Marriage  is  permitted  by  God,  but  it  is  a  lower  es- 
state  than  celibacy. 

5.  The  church  is  a  holy  institution  composed  of  those 
who  have  been  regenerated  and  who  manifest  it  by  obed- 
ience to  all  the  commandments  of  Christ. 

6.  The  means  whereby  the  church  shall  be  preserved 
a  holy  institution  of  pious  people  is  the  Ban,  as  described 
in  Matthew  18. 

7.  The  ministry  of  this  church  is  composed  of  men  hav- 
ing Scriptural  qualifications,  chosen  from  its  ranks  by  the 
congregation  under  the  direction  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
They  should  not  be  highly  educated. 

8.  The  initiatory  rite  of  the  church  is  baptism  of  adults 
only,  by  a  threefold  immersion  in  water.  This  involved 
the  rejection  of  infant  baptism  and  also  of  any  mode  oth- 
er than  a  trine  immersion. 

9.  The  Lord? s  Supper  is  for  those  only  who  have  shown 
by  a  pious  life  of  obedience  to  Christ  that  they  are  regen- 
erate.    It  is  a  full  meal  eaten  in  the  evening,  instead  of  a 

*  See  "A  Plain  View,  etc."  Question  32. 


THE  DUNKERS'  DCCTRIJSES  si 

morsel  of  bread  and  a  sip  of  wine  taken  in  the  forenoon, 
and  includes,  besides  the  Communion,  the  rite  of  Feet 
Washing,  in  obedience  to  Christ's  commandments  in  John 
13. 

10.  The  organic  law  of  this  church  is  the  Scripture,  es- 
pecially the  New  Testament.  This  contains  full  and 
complete  provisions  for  the  organization  and  rites  of  the 
church.  It  also  contains  the  statute  law  of  this  society, 
the  church,  obedience  to  which  law  is  the  condition  of 
membership.  Therefore,  the  supreme  duty  of  the  Chris- 
tian is  obedience  to  all  the  commandments  of  Christ. 

11.  The  state  is  the  institution  ordained  of  God  for  the 
exercise  of  such  powers  of  government  as  do  not  interfere 
with  the  conscience  of  each  individual  under  its  jurisdic- 
tion.    Here  the  doctrine  is  entirely  negative. 

12.  The  doctrine  of  the  state  gave  them  the  negative 
doctrine  of  Non- Resistance  \  i.  e.,  refusal  to  bear  arms  in 
defence  of  one's  country.  Later  it  was  extended  to  in- 
clude refusal  to  protect  one's  self  against  violence. 

13.  The  doctrine  of  the  state  also  logically  included  the 
Dunker  doctrine  of  refusal  to  take  a  civil  oath. 

These  doctrines,  noted  individually  above  in  order  to 
show  the  probable  order  of  their  genesis,  and  to  call 
attention  distinctly  to  each  point  emphasized,  may  all  be 
included  either  under  three  heads,  viz.,  (1)  the  doctrine 
of  the  Christian  life,  (2)  the  doctrine  of  the  church,  (3) 
the  doctrine  of  the  state;  or,  even  under  two,  (1)  the  ideal 
of  society,  and  (2)  the  ideal  of  membership  in  that  society. 

With  these  conceptions  dominant  in  Mack's  thought 
there  was  but  small  place  for  strictly  theological  doc- 
trines. What  he  had  were  survivals  for  the  most  part. 
At  a  few  points  they  touched  his  conceptions  as  deter- 
mined by  his  ideal  of  society/\  Thus,  Mack's  conception 
of  the  Gospel,  the  Christian  life,  and  Sin  were  the  result 


32  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

partly  of  his  early  training  and  partly  of  his  dominating 
conception  of  the  ideal  Christian  society,  and  therefore 
they  had  assumed  a  prominence  not  accorded  to  other 
theological  doctrines,  equally  familiar  to  him.  But  Mack, 
and  with  him  the  Dunkers,  were  not  theologians.  Their 
interest  was  practical  and  ecclesiastical,  not  speculative. 

God  was  thought  of  as  the  great  lawgiver  and  judge. 

The  Gospel  was  conceived  of  as  the  revelation  of  the 
Christian  law. 

The  Christian  Life  was  one  of  strict  obedience  to  the 
Christian  law.  As  he  conceived  it  therefore,  man  is  on 
probation;  he  is  not  saved  in  the  present,  but  is  being 
tested  to  see  whether  he  shall  finally  be  saved. 

Faith  and  love  were  simply  obedience  to  the  law. 

Man  was  created  sinless,  but  became  corrupt  through 
the  fall  of  Adam.  But  man's  will  has  not  been  impaired 
so  that  he  is  unable  to  choose  the  good.  By  obedience  he 
can  purify  himself  from  this  corruption.^! 

Mack's  conception  of  sin  is  not  clear.  He  does  not 
define  "corruption".  But  from  the  fact  that  he  says 
that  infants  who  die  without  baptism  are  saved  by  the 
merits  of  Christ;  that  man  became  "corrupt"  and  "un- 
clean" through  the  disobedience  of  Adam;  that  he  cannot 
re-enter  paradise  until  "purified"  by  Christ,  and  that 
what  man  needs  is  regeneration;  it  seems  that  he  means 
metaphysical  corruption.  On  the  other  hand,  when  he 
says  of  the  effect  of  the  Fall  of  Adam  on  man,  that  c  'man 
became  puffed  up  and  in  his  own" conceit,  desired  great- 
ness and  power",  and,  that  man  can  purify  himself  from 
this  depraved  condition  by  obedience  to  God's  commands 
and  by  submitting  his  reason  to  the  will  of  God,  it  seems 
that  he  means  by  "corruption"  only  ethical,  personal 
guilt.  Evidently  Mack  had  no  clear  conception  of  sin. 
He  used  terms  that  show  he  was  inconsistent.     However, 


THE  DUNKERS'  DOCTRINES  33 

it  is  quite  clear  from  the  fact  that  he  had  but  small  place 
for  the  work  of  Christ,  that  the  ethical  conception  is  the 
one  that  controlled  him.  Obedience  is  the  all  important 
duty,  as  he  saw  it. 

Salvation  is  future.  By  continued  obedience  to  God's 
law,  man  finally  shows  himself  worthy  of  salvation.  If 
faithful  to  the  end,  he  will  be  saved  in  heaven,  the  glories 
of  which  are  described  in  a  very  materalistic  fashion. 

The  only  important  points  in  Mack's  eschatology  are 
his  belief  that  Jesus  is  soon  to  apper  as  judge  and  king, 
and  that  lost  men  are  finally  to  be  restored.  However, 
it  should  be  said  that  Mack  does  not  believe  in  the  thous- 
and years'  reign,  a  belief  current  in  certain  Anabaptist 
circles,  and  he  thinks  that  the  doctrine  of  final  restora- 
tion of  the  lost  should  not  be  preached  to  sinners. 

It  should  be  noticed  in  this  connection  that  the  Dunkers 
put  all  the  emphasis  of  their  thought,  not  upon  these 
theological  doctrines,  but  upon  the  doctrines  that  had 
risen  in  protest  against  the  life  and  practices  of  the 
orthodox  churches.  Hence,  what  the  Dunkers  called 
"doctrines"  were  not  doctrines  in  the  strict  theological 
sence  at  all.  They  were,  for  the  most  part,  protests 
against  abuses  that  had  grown  up  in  the  practical  and 
ecclesiastical  spheres  of  life.  In  other  words,  they  were 
social  in  their  nature.  They  had  to  do,  not  with  dogma, 
but  with  conduct.  They  related,  not  to  speculative 
thought,  but  to  life,  and  church  organization  and  rites. 

(b)  Their  Origin: 

The  doctrines  of  the  Dunkers  were  the  result  of  their 
reaction  upon  the  conditions  of  life  and  the  facts  of 
experience.  We  shall  be  able  to  understand  better  the 
genesis  of  the  doctrines  of  the  Dunkers,  if  we  look  first 
at  the  origin  of  the  more  general  sectarian  principles. 

The  complexity  of  the  social  composition  mentioned 


34  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

above  gives  us  the  starting  point  of  our  exposition.  The 
material  environment  had  determined  a  composite  popu- 
lation in  most  of  the  states  of  southwestern  Germany. 
The  breach  between  rulers  and  ruled,  feudal  lord  and 
serf,  pastor  and  flock  was  wide.  The  small  courts  were 
aping  the  luxurious  court  of  France.  In  order  to  do  so, 
the  rulers  had  to  make  the  taxes  of  the  people  heavy. 
Both  in  the  getting  and  in  the  spending  of  the  money, 
the  ruling  classes  widened  the  social  chasm  between 
themselves  and  their  subjects.  Naturally  the  heaviest 
burdens  fell  upon  the  humblest  class. 

By  an  unfortunate  circumstance,  the  three  tolerated 
religious  were  identified  more  or  less  closely  with  the 
ruling,  instead  of  with  the  subject,  classes.  Most  of  the 
nobles  belonged  to  the  orthodox  churches.  The  pastors 
of  these  churches  were  generally  looked  upon  as  belong- 
ing to  the  upper  classes.  Naturally,  the  interests  of  the 
court  were  the  interests  of  the  pastors  of  the  dominant 
churches,  for  it  was  to  the  state  that  the  religious 
authorities  had  to  look  for  protection  from  heretics  and 
sectarian  enemies. 

Another  circumstance  of  the  religious  situation  contrib- 
uted to  the  social  separation  of  the  religious  leaders  from 
the  people.  In  the  period  following  the  Reformation 
under  Luther,  the  energies  of  the  leaders  of  the  tolerated 
religions  had  been  absorbed  in  theological  debate,  which 
however,  was  of  interest  chiefly  to  learned  men.  This 
emphasis  upon  theology  led  most  pastors,  as  well  as  the 
theologians,  to  neglect  that  aspect  of  religion  which  the 
common  people  could  understand,  and  in  which  they 
might  have  taken  an  interest;  viz.,  the  cultivation  of  the 
religious  and  moral  life.  This  had  two  results.  Upon 
the  less  earnest  Christians  it  had  the  effect  of  narrowing 
their  interests  in  religion  either  to  a  perfunctory  cere- 


THE  DUNKERS'  DOCTRINES  35 

monialism,  or  to  the  brutal  pleasure  of  stamping  out 
heresy  by  persecution.  Upon  the  more  earnest  souls, 
on  the  other  hand,  it  had  the  effect  of  weakening  the  ties 
that  bound  them  to  the  church,  and  of  driving  them  to 
the  Bible  and  extra-ecclesiastical  sources  for  the  spiritual 
help  they  desired.  Naturally  the  former  class  was  the 
larger.  These  conditions  produced  a  situation  in  which 
the  slightest  stimulus  was  sufficient  to  provoke  a  reaction 
by  the  more  serious-minded  against  the  lifeless  forma- 
lism and  the  cold  intellectualism  of  orthodoxy.  Such  a 
stimulus  was  at  hand  in  the  persecutions  of  this  people 
by  the  orthdox  churchmen. 

Here,  then,  were  in  conflict  two  ideals,  which  at  bottom 
were  the  outgrowths  of  a  social  difference  in  the  popula- 
tion. The  one  ideal  was  that  presented  by  orthodoxy 
with  its  harsh  intolerance  of  anything  that  suggested 
heresy.  This,  for  the  most  part,  was  the  ideal  of  the 
upper  social  classes.  Over  against  this  was  set  the  ideal 
of  the  more  serious-minded  part  of  the  Christian  pop- 
ulation. This  party  consisted  mostly  of  members  of  the 
lower  classes  of  society.  Again,  within  each  of  these 
parties  were  infinite  gradations  due  to  unequal  response 
to  the  ideal,  or  to  the  presence  of  a  slightly  modified  ideal. 
To  this  complex  situation  was  due  the  origin  of  the  many 
sects  that  characterized  this  period.  They  were  social 
organizations  formed  by  a  like  response  to  certain  doc- 
trines. The  doctrines  were  the  result  of  the  conflict  of 
diverse  elements  in  a  heterogeneous  population.  The 
heterogeneity  was  due  to  the  physical  character  of  the 
country. 

These  were  the  social  conditions  out  of  which  grew,  for 
example,  the  ideals  of  Hochmann  von  Hochenau.  He 
was  only  one  of  a  number  of  men  who  appeared  in  that 
part  of  Germany  and  in  Switzerland  with  ideals  that  dif 


36  TEE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

fered  from  those  held  by  the  orthodox  churches.  He 
here  deserves  special  notice  because  his  case  is  typical, 
and  also  because  of  his  relation  to  Alexander  Mack. 
Hochmann  had  been  a  student  at  Halle,  where  he  was 
"awakened"  under  the  influence  of  the  Pietist,  Francke. 
Hochmann  was  one  of  the  most  influential  of  the  many 
mystical,  separatistic  Pietists  of  the  time.  He  had  come 
to  Schwarzenau  in  1698  because  of  a  severe  persecution 
that  had  broken  out  in  I  Hesse-Darmstadt  and  Frankfort 
against  the  Pietists  and  the  Enthusiasts.  Here  he  lived 
as  a  hermit  in  a  little  hut,  from  which  he  would  often  go 
out  upon  long  journeys  to  preach.  From  1700-1711  he  was 
absent  on  a  pilgrimage  to  western  and  northern  Germany, 
"as  a  preacher  of  a  living,  internal,  but  also  separatistic 
Christianity  as  opposed  to  external  ecclesiasticism  (Kirch- 
lichkeit)  and  dead,  orthodoxy."*  On  these  journeys 
Mack  was  one  of  his  traveling  companions.  And  from  a 
comparison  of  the  teachings  of  these  two  men  it  is  easy 
to  draw  the  conclusion  that  Mack  was  an  apt  disciple. 

Hochmann  was  forced,  while  in  prison  at  Detmold  in 
1702,  to  write  out  for  the  Count^of  Lippe-Detmold  a  con- 
fession of  faith.  His  doctrines  according  to  it  may  be 
summarized  as  follows:  (1)  Upon  the  main  points  of 
Christianity  he  is  in  accord  with  the  orthodox  faith. 
He  believes  "in  one,  eternal,  sole,  almighty  omnipresent 
God,  as  he  has  revealed  himself  in  the  Old  Testament  as 
the  God  of  Abraham,  Isaac  and  Jacob,  but  in  the  new 
Covenant  as »  Father,  Son  .and  Spirit."  About  God  he 
does  "not  find  it  necessary  to  dispute  or  criticize  very 

*Goebel,  "Geschichte  d.  Christlichen  Lebens,"  Bd  2,  s.  818.  To  Goebel 
more  than  to  any 5  one  else  I  am  indebted  for  much  that  is  of  interest  to  us 
in  the  history  of  this  period.  Dr.  H.  G.  Brumbaugh  drew  my  attention  to 
his  importance  fortanyone  who  would  understand  the  conditions  of  the 
time  in  which  the  Bunkers  arose,  q  Dr.  Brumbaugh's  section  on  Hochmann 
is  an  excellent  epitome  of  Goebel's>hapter. 


THE  BUNKERS'  DOCTRINES  37 

much,''  but  considers  it  "better  to  submit  one's  self  to 
him  and  experience  his  inward  working,  for  it  is  by  the 
inward  workings  that  the  Father  reveals  the  Son  and  the 
Son  the  Father  through  the  mighty  workings  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  without  whom  nothing  can  be  attained  in  godly 
things.  This  only  is  eternal  life,  that  one  properly  ac- 
knowledge this  one  God. "  To  show  what  he  means  by 
this  he  says  that  he  believes  the  "well  known  Ausellic 
creed.  "*  (2)  He  believes  that  "baptism  is  for  adults  on- 
ly, since  not  one  word  can  be  found  in  the  Scriptures  of 
an  express  command  by  God  or  Christ  for  the  baptism 
of  Children."  He  insists  that  there  should  be  just  as 
plain  a  command  for  infant  baptism  as  there  was  for  cir- 
cumcision under  the  old  Covenant.  (3)  He  believes  that 
"the  Lord's  Supper  was  instituted  only  for  the  select 
disciples  of  Christ,  who  by  the  renunciation  of  all  world- 
ly things  follow  Christ  in  deed  and  truth;  and  not  for  the 
godless  children  of  the  world,  who  today  are  admitted  to 
the  love  feast."  (4)  He  believes  in  Christian  perfection 
(Vollkommenheit).  He  does  not  claim  to  have  reached 
perfection,  but  he  believes  that  "one  may  be  sanctified 
not  only  forensically,  but  also  perfectly,  that  is,  really, 
(nicht  allein  gerecht  sondern  auch  vollkommen  geheiligt), 
so  that  no  more  sin  will  remain  in  him. ' '  This  he  believes, 
because  of  the  testimony  of  Scripture.  "This  perfection" 
he  explains,  "must  be  effected  internally,  i.e.  mystically, 
within  the  soul  through  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  and  a 
spiritual  image  of  Christ  must  be  won  by  us.  Where 
this  does  not  occur  in  this  life,  men  cannot  attain  unto 
the  immediate  vision  of  God — intuition,  (Anschauung), 
since  without  holiness  no  one  can  see  God,  for  he  who  has 
the  hope  of  attaining  unto  the  intuition  (Anschauung)  of 
God  must  purify  himself,  even  as  he  is  pure;  1  John 3:3." 

*  I  am  unable  to  find  anywhere  any  reference  to  such  a  creed. 


38  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

(5)  He  believes  that  "Christ  alone,  as  head  of  the  church, 
can  appoint  teachers  and  preachers,  and  qualify  them  for 
their  positions.  This  Christ  does  through  the  office  of 
the  Holy  Spirit."  (6)  He  believes  that  government 
(obrigkeit)  is  a  divine  ordinance  to  which  he  willingly 
submits  in  all  civil  matters,  but  he  refuses  to  acknowl- 
edge that  those  who  struggle  against  God's  word  and 
oppress  his  conscience  have  any  rightful  authority. 
Further,  he  does  "not  believe  that  the  essentia  magistratus 
politici  are  necessarily  Christian  (dass  sie  ein  Christ 
sey),  because  the  Turk  and  the  Pope  are  true  authorities, 
but  they  are  not  Christians,  and  are  doomed  soon  to  be 
superceded  by  the  glorious  Christ,  whose  coming  is  so 
near  at  hand."  (7)  He  believes  in  the  "final  restoration 
of  damned  men."  This  he  believes,  because  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  also,  because  "for  one  not  to  believe  it 
would  reflect  on  the  power  of  Jesus  Christ  as  Savior."  * 
Other  beliefs  held  by  Hochmann,  which  do  not  appear 
in  this  confession,  were,  (1)  that  all  organized  churches 
or  sects  are  a  Spiritual  "Babylon",  and  that  a  mystical, 
Pietistical  kind  of  Christian  life  independent  of  all  organ- 
izations is  the  kind  that  pleases  God;  t  (2)  that  marriage 
is  a  less  holy  estate  than  the  celibate  life.  He  taught 
that  there  are  five  different  kinds  of  marriage:  (a)  An 
entirely  bestial  marriage.  This  is  between  two  persons 
who  are  not  the  children  of  God.  This  is  an  impure 
estate,  and  cannot  be  made  holy  by  the  external  act  of 
the  minister.  By  such  marriages  God's  name  is  profaned. 
Instead  of  being  married  by  the  religious  officials,  such 
people  should  be  united  only  by  the  civil  authorities,     (b) 

*For  a  f acsmile  of  the  Confession  together  with  an  English  translation  see 
Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  75  f.  Goebel  also  gives  a  part 
of  it  in  his  "Geschichte  d.  Christlichen  Lebens",  Bd  2,  S.  820  sq. 

f  Goebel,  2:818,  819. 


THE  DUNKER&  DOCTRINES  39 

An  honorable,  but  yet  an  entirely  heathenish,  and  impure 
marriage.  This  sort  is  not  so  bad  as  the  first,  yet  in 
God's  sight  it  is  impure,  since  the  parties  are  not  in 
the  covenant  with  God.  This  sort  is  by  the  permission 
of  God,  as  all  sinful  deeds  are,  but  not  by  the  foreknowl- 
edge and  will  of  God  in  Christ  Jesus.  The  difference 
between  this  species  and  the  first  mentioned,  Hochmann 
does  not  make  perfectly  clear.  However,  the  inference 
may  be  drawn  from  what  he  says  as  to  the  first  kind  that 
this  second  kind  of  marriage  differs  from  the  first  in  that 
it  is  not  entered  into  by  the  persons  concerned,  from 
purely  carnal  motives,  (c)  A  Christian  marriage,  in  which 
both  parties  are  Christians,  and  whose  purposes  are  not 
impure,  but  that  they  may  have  children  for  the  glory  of 
God.  (d)  A  virginal  marriage,  in  which  two  persons 
wholly  betrothed  and  devoted  to  God  and  the  Lamb 
become  united  with  one  another  in  the  very  purest, 
virginal  love  of  Christ  for  no  other  purpose  than  that 
they  may  serve  God  in  Christ  without  intermission,  and 
in  the  pure,  clear  love-spirit  of  Jesus  may  be  united  to 
the  eternal  bride-groom  of  the  soul,  that  they  may  be 
helpful  to  each  other  in  such  holy  union  of  love  unto  per- 
fect salvation  by  fighting  the  fight  of  faith  together  and 
striving  together  in  united  prayers,  and  then  may  render 
some  assistance  to  each  other  according  to  the  necessities 
of  this  life  here  on  earth.  As  examples  of  such  he  cites 
instances  given  in  Gottfried  Arnold's  "Primitive  Christ- 
ianity", and  also  the  example  of  Joseph  and  Mary. 
This  sort,  doubtless,  was  a  spiritual  marriage.  In  such 
marriage  two  persons  do  not  have  sexual  intercourse,  but 
they  are  married  simply  for  the  spiritual  advantages 
that  comes  from  companionship.  However,  Hochmann 
says  that  they  should  not  live  together  without  a  marriage 
ceremony  by  the  proper  officials,  in  order  that  no  scandal 


40  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

may  arise,  (e)  Marriage  with  Christ  alone,  the  pure 
Lamb.  This  is  the  most  perfect  grade  in  the  married 
state.  When  a  soul  betroths  itself  alone  to  God  and  the 
Lamb,  and  recognizes  Jesus  alone  as  its  true  husband, 
and  has  thus  wholly  betrothed  and  offered  itself  up  as  a 
bride  to  Christ,  there  the  highest  grade  of  glory  in  the 
Kingdom  of  Christ  will  be  attained  by  a  soul.* 

This  is  all  the  more  interesting,  because  we  shall  hear 
echoes  of  it  hereafter.  Especially  significant  are  his  be- 
liefs concerning  baptism,  the  authority  of  the  state,  the 
Lord's  Supper,  Christian  perfection,  and  the  offices  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  in  the  choosing  of  ministers  of  the  Word. 
His  position  on  marriage  did  not  have  an  abiding  influence 
on  Mack.  His  doctrine  of  final  restoration  has  signifi- 
cance for  the  earlier  history  of  the  Dunker  movement, 
but  the  belief  soon  died  out  among  them.f 

I  have  noticed  Hochmann's  positions  thus  fully  because 
of  their  influence  on  Mack,  the  founder  of  the  Dunkers. 

The  rise  of  the  doctrines  of  the  Dunkers  is  a  further 
and  better  illustration  of  the  working  of  the  social  pro- 
cesses just  noticed  in  the  explanation  of  the  rise  of  the 
more  general  sectarian  principles. 

Environment  and  historial  conditions  together  had  pro- 
duced, a  mixed  and  socially  diverse  population  in  the 
Rhine  countries.  There  was  no  place  in  Europe  where 
the  conditions  were  more  favorable  to  heterogeneity. 
The  one  place  in  the  southern  part  of  that  valley,  where, 
in  1700,  a  person  was  safe  from  persecution  for  conscience, 
sake,  was  Wittgenstein.  It  was  not  the  most  fertile  land 
in  Europe,  but  it  was  as  fertile  as  the  adjacent  parts,  and 
its  other  advantages  offset  its  economic  disadvantages. 
Thus,  while  it  did  not  possess  economic  conditions  fav- 

*Goebel,  2:822  f.     I  have  translated  quite  fully  and  almost  literally. 
t"Chronicon  Ephratense,"  p.  245  f . 


THE  BUNKERS'  DOCTRINES  ^ 

orable  to  a  mixed  population,  the  religious  conditions 
there  favored  the  assembling  of  a  religious  population 
that  were  in  harmony  on  general  principles,  while  divid- 
ed on  certain  specific  doctrines.  The  social  composition, 
thus  brought  about,  was  such  that  general  cooperation 
was  possible  in  only  a  few  matters.  The  differences,  on 
the  other  hand,  among  the  elements  of  the  population 
were  so  many,  and  became  so  marked  on  close  acquaint- 
ance that  differing  ideals  were  bound  to  appear  through 
conflict  and  selection.  For  example,  those  who  became 
Dunkers  were  first  Pietists.  But  the  social  composition 
at  Wittgenstein  was  such  that  there  was  no  unity  among 
the  Pietists  upon  certain  important  points,  such  as,  bap- 
tism, the  ban,  the  form  of  the  Lord's  Supper  and  Feet 
Washing.  Reacting  on  these  conditions,  Alexander  Mack 
conceived  of  a  certain  definite  ideal  for  the  reformation 
of  the  Christian  church.  This  ideal  included  the  concep- 
tion of  specific  doctrines  as  well  as  a  definite  programme 
by  which  the  ideal  could  be  realized.  It  was  in  response 
to  this  suggestion  and  ideal  that  the  Dunker  sect  took 
form. 

How  these  doctrines  took  definite  shape  in  Mack's 
mind  remains  to  be  noticed.  In  general,  this  occurred 
through  a  process  of  conflict  and  selection.  The  hetero- 
geneity of  the  population  in  Wittgenstein  forced  upon 
Mack  and  his  fellow  believers  a  recognition  of  mental  and 
practical  differences,  and  of  differences  of  beliefs  and 
standards,  and  compelled  them  to  compare  and  choose. 
This  precipitated  a  conflict  of  beliefs  and  standards, 
which  could  result  only  in  the  birth  of  new  ideals,  or  in 
the  strengthening  of  those  already  borrowed  from  an  ear- 
lier time. 

Naturally,  the  first  ideals  to  arise  out  of  this  situation 
were  negative,  for  they  arose  in  opposition  to  the  policy 


k%  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

of  the  party  in  the  church  socially  unlike  the  Dunkers. 
They  were  religious,  for  religion  was  the  predominant  in- 
terest of  serious-minded  men  at  that  time.  And  they 
were  ecclesiastical,  rather  than  theological,  for  the  peo- 
ple, who  later  became  Dunkers,  uneducated  for  the  most 
part,  had  no  interests  in  the  speculative  questions  of  the 
day,  but  were  greatly  concerned  with  practical  questions 
of  church  polity,  organization  and  conduct.  Moreover, 
the  ideals  that  thus  arose  in  reaction  against  the  policies 
and  practices  of  the  state  churches,  were  social  in  that 
they  arose  out  of  social  conditions  and  had  to  do  with  so- 
cial organization.  In  particular  these  doctrines  arose  as 
follows: 

The  ideal  of  the  Christian  life  grew  up  in  reaction 
against  ^bad  moral  conditions  >that  resulted  from  the 
church's  prolonged  dogmatic  controversies  and  the  con- 
sequent absorption  of  interest  in  theological  discussions. 
These  discussions  were  not  such  as  to  enlist  the  interest 
of  the  common  people.  Since,  therefore,  they  were  not 
interested  in  theology,  and  since  they  were  a  serious- 
minded  folk,  their  interest  must  have  some  object.  Such 
an  object  was  suggested  by  the  condition  of  the  life  and 
conduct  of  some  members  of  the  churches.  Thus,  the 
ideal  of  the  Christian  life  that  may  be  called  Pietistic 
arose.  This  ideal  was  already  in  existence  when  Mack 
and  others  became  dissatisfied  with  the  Reformed  and 
Lutheran  churches.  They  came  to  it  doubtless  through 
a  social  reaction  similar  to  that  just  described,  and 
adopted  it,  because  it  met  their  needs,  and,  because  it- 
was  an  ideal  held,  for  the  most  part,  by  their  own  social 
class. 

The  insistance  of  the  Dunkers  on  plain  dress  is,  in  part, 
attributable  to  their  doctrine  of  the  Gospel  as  the  law  of 
the  Christian  life.  *    In  part  it  is  to  be  explained  by  their 

*  See  1  Tim.  2:9, 1  Pet.  3:3. 


THE  BUNKERS'  DOCTRINES  43 

imitation  of  sects  that  had  preceded  them.  But,  more 
profoundly,  it  was  due  to  their  feeling  of  unlikeness  to 
the  people  that  formed  the  membership  of  the  tolerated 
churches.  On  the  part  of  the  learned  and  great,  it  was  a 
period  of  elegance  and  over  refinement  in  dress,  f 
Ordinary  people  could  not  afford  to  dress  in  the  prevail- 
ing expensive  fashion.  They  naturally  felt  that  when 
wrong  views  of  religion  and  ethics  and  a  taste  for  fine 
clothes  were  combined  in  the  same  persons,  especially 
when  those  persons  were  their  persecutors,  the  elegant 
apparel  must  be  as  wrong  as  the  immorality  and  the  perse- 
cuting spirit. 

The  ban  is  similarly  to  be  accounted  for.  Historically, 
we  should  say  that  its  adoption  by  the  Dunkers  was  due 
to,  (1)  the  application  of  the  principle,  that  life  should  be 
conformed  to  the  moral  ideals  of  the  New  Testament.  * 
This  led  naturally,  by  an  interpretation  of  certain  pas- 
sages in  St.  Paul,  to  insistance  on  separation  from  the 
world,  which  could  be  accomplished  only  by  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  ban-  Its  adoption  was  due,  (2)  to  historical 
connection  with  such  sects  as  the  Mennonites,  who  held 
to  this  doctrine.  But  more  fundamentally,  it  grew  out 
of  opposition  to  the  loveless  and  sometimes  immoral  lives 
of  those  members  of  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed  church- 
es by  whom  the  Pietistic  sects  were  persecuted.  The 
Dunkers  knew  that  there  existed  no  sympathy  be- 
tween themselves  and  the  noble  churchmen  that  oppressed 
them  with  taxes  and  rents,  who  cared  nothing  for  the 
welfare  of  the  poor,  when  their  own  interests  were  at 
stake,  and  who  lent  the  power  of  the  state  to  the  persecu- 
tion of  their  humbler  brethren.  Especially  alien  to  them 
were  the  clergy,  educated,  sound  in  doctrine,  but  often 

*For  example,  Rom.  12:2,  Mt.  18:15—18. 

tSee  Schultz,  "Das  Haeusliohe  Leben  im  Mittelalter,  etc."  S.  221  sq. 


U  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

un-Christian  in  life,  interested  in  theological  disputes 
rather  than  in  the  spiritual  welfare  of  their  people,  hating 
those  who  were  not  members  of  their  church,  salaried 
from  the  oppressive  taxes  levied  upon  their  poor  parish- 
ioners, and  often  upon  those  who  were  not  members  of 
their  flocks,  and  persecuting  with  the  strong  arm  of  the 
law  those  whom  they  could  not  convince  with  their  logic* 
It  is  little  wonder  that  the  Dunkers  called  the  churches 
to  which  such  men  belonged  a  spiritual  "Babylon".  It 
was  but  natural  that  they  insisted  on  the  ban  in  order  to 
prevent  their  church  from  having  within  it  such  men  as 
composed  the  membership  of  the  churches  that  persecu- 
ted them.  Thus,  the  ban  was  f  udamentally  an  expression 
of  consciousness  of  kind,  which  in  turn  reflected  hetero- 
geneity of  the  social  population. 

The  consciousness  of  kind  likewise  explains  the  opposi- 
tion of  the  Dunkers  to  a  paid  and  educated  ministry.  It 
was  at  the  hands  of  such  a  ministry,  that  they  had  ex- 
perienced their  persecutions.  Such  a  ministry,  therefore, 
must  be  wrong.  Everything  that  was  connected  with 
such  a  ministry  and  differentiated  it  from  the  Dunkers, 
must  have,  in  their  opinion,  contributed  to  make  its  mem- 
bers godless  persecutors.  For  the  most  part,  the  Dunk- 
ers themselves  were  uneducated,  and  hence,  education 
must  have  made  their  persecutors  what  they  were.  If 
so,  education  for  the  ministry  is  wrong. 

How  shall  we  explain  the  mystical  and  ascetic  tendencies 
that  characterized  the  Dunkers  in  the  early  period  of 
their  history?  These  tendencies,  as  Ritschl  has  pointed 
out,  had  their  roots  in  the  Middle  Ages.  He  finds  that 
the  tendencies  present  in  some  of  the  monastic  orders 
bore  fruit  in  Protestantism.  He  is  right  when  he  sees  in 
these  tendencies  a  reversion  to  type.     He  notes  that  the 

*See  Mack,  "A  Plain  View,  etc."    p  22,  88,  89. 


THE  BUNKERS'  DOCTRINES  45 

tendency  to  mysticism  was  present  in  Lutheranism  itself.* 
There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  ideal  of  life  held  by  a 
large  element  in  the  Catholic  church,  expressing  itself  in 
monastic  mysticism,  and  striving  after  ecstatic  commun- 
ion with  God,  and  that  the  monastic  asceticism  that  strove 
to  find  rest  and  peace  in  the  denial  of  matrimony  and  oth- 
er ordinary  ways  of  life,  or  in  the  monastic  community  of 
goods,  made  a  strong  appeal  to  the  common  people  in  the 
Protestant  churches  and  sects  as  well  as  to  those  in  the 
Catholic  church.  Especially  was  this  true  in  an  age 
when  turbulent  passions  and  changing  customs,  wars 
and  oppressions  made  men  feel  that  their  Helper  was 
afar  off.  These  tendencies,  appealing  to  men's  desires 
for  a  short  cut  out  of  their  miseries,  spiritual  and  mater- 
ial, found  ready  acceptance  in  such  a  time  as  we  are  now 
studying. 

But  after  all  this  is  said,  the  question  that  confronts 
us  is,  Why  did  men  revert  to  the  type?  When  we  examine 
social  conditions  in  periods  in  which  mystical  and  ascetic 
tendencies  were  in  the  ascendant,  we  find  poverty,  op- 
pression and  great  insecurity  of  life  and  property.  Back 
of  these  conditions  we  find  heterogeneity  of  population. 
Mysticism  and  asceticism  have  risen  in  those  classes  up- 
on whom  the  burdens  of  life  have  pressed  most  heavily. 
Hence,  whether  in  the  first  centuries  of  Christian  history 
or  in  the  eighteenth,  these  features  of  religious  life  have 
resulted  from  the  reaction  of  people  upon  environment 
created  for  them  by  complexity  of  the  population.  In  oth- 
er words,  they  are  social  products,  f 

It  was  noticed  above  that  most  of  the  points  in  the  theo- 

*"Geschichte  des  Pietismus,"  2:  3,  sq. 

tSee  Moeller,  "History  of  the  Christian  Church,"  1:356;  Weingarten, 
"Der  Ursprung  d.  Monchthum,"  ZKG.  I.  land  4,  Goth.  1877;  Also  in 
"Rael-Encyclopaedie,"  10:758  sq. 


46  THE  BUNKERS  IF  EUROPE 

logy  of  the  Bunkers  were  simply  the  theology  of  their  or- 
thodox opponents.  How  did  it  happen,  it  may  be  asked, 
that  the  Dunkers  adopted  some  of  the  doctrines  of  their 
opponents  while  they  dissented  from  others?  Of  the  be- 
liefs that  they  had  in  common  with  the  orthodox  churches 
several  things  are  to  be  observed:  (1)  These  doctrines, 
or  beliefs,  related  to  points  of  theology  proper  rather 
than  to  ecclesiastical  procedure  or  matters  of  practical 
life;  (2)  Being  theological  doctrines,  they  had  compara- 
tively little  interest  for  this  untheological  people.  These 
points  of  theology  had  been  taught  them  in  their  child- 
hood, and,  as  they  had  no  connection  with  specific  social 
differences,  they  never  became  points  in  dispute.  The 
Dunkers,  consequently,  who  were  not  systematic  think- 
ers, simply  retained  them  without  examination.  (3)  These 
doctrines  had  no  connection  with  their  social  life,  as  did 
those  points  in  which  they  dissented.  Therefore,  they 
were  not  forced  to  reconsider  them.  (4)  They  did  not 
enter  into  the  ideals,  response  to  which  created  the  Dun- 
ker  church.  They  had  no  relation  to  the  ideal  of  a  social 
organization. 

The  rejection  of  infant  baptism  by  the  Dunkers  can  be 
explained  historically,  that  is  to  say,  in  terms  of  the 
principle  of  imitation.  Obviously,  however,  another 
generalization  must  be  invoked  to  account  for  the  re- 
jection of  infant  baptism  by  those  who  first  rejected  it, 
and  I  think  also  to  fully  account  for  its  rejection  by  the 
Dunkers.  This  other  generalization  is  more  fundament- 
al. Those  who  first  rejected  infant  baptism  did  so  be- 
cause they  felt  the  unlikeness  between  themselves  and 
those  that  practiced  it.  Of  course,  when  they  had  reject- 
ed it,  they  appealed  to  Scripture  to  sustain  their  conten- 
tion, because  all  Protestants  invoked  the  binding  force  of 
the  Scriptural  text.     The  case  of  the  Zurich  Baptists  is 


THE  D  TINKERS'  D  0  CTRI1SES  47 

in  point.  They  rejected  infant  baptism  primarily,  not  be- 
cause they  knew  of  the  rejection  of  it  by  some  earlier 
sect,  but  because  they  felt  that  there  was  a  greater  like- 
ness between  those  who  refused  to  practice  it  than  be- 
tween themselves  and  the  Reformed  church  at  Zurich. 
Social  conditions  first  made  them  different  in  various 
ways.  Then  they  began  to  proclaim  their  views.  There- 
upon the  main  body  of  the  Reformed  party,  with  the  aris- 
tocratic element  supporting  it,  felt  the  difference  also, 
and  decided  it  could  better  afford  to  cut  off  the  dissenters 
than  to  alienate  "the  substantial  people."  So  the  dissi- 
dents were  cast  out.* 

Doubtless,  imitation  of  historical  precedents  that  had 
come  to  their  knowledge,  accounts  in  a  measure  for  the 
rejection  of  infant  baptism  by  the  Dunkers.  Imitation 
played  a  part  also  in  their  insistence  on  a  trine  immersion 
as  the  only  valid  form  of  baptism,  and  again  in  the  insist- 
ence of  all  Baptists  on  immersion.  But  it  was  a  second- 
ary, not  a  primary  part.  The  primary  impulse  that  they 
obeyed  was  the  consciousness  of  kind,  itself  the  result  of 
heterogeneity  in  the  social  composition. 

Conditions  of  life  similar  to  those  that  surrounded  the 
Christians  of  the  early  church  surrounded  them.  It  was 
the  poor  that  were  involved  in  the  movement.  They  had 
little  hope  for  better  things  in  this  world.  No  more  than 
the  early  Christians  did  they  share  in  the  government. 

On  the  contrary  the  government  oppressed  them.  The 
ascendant  religions  persecuted  them.  The  doctrines, 
held  by  those  who  persecuted,  that  had  any  relation  to 
the  oppressions  and  persecutions,  must  in  the  eyes  of 
the  persecuted  be  wrong,  especially,  when  the  Scriptures 

*See  American  Journal  of  Theology,  Jan.  1905,  where  a  letter  of  Qrebel, 
one  of  the  leaders  of  the  Baptist  party  at  Zurich,  is  translated,  which  sets 
forth  this  consciousness  of  a  difference. 


43  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  E  UR  OPE 

were  against  the  contentions  of  the  persecutors.  Such 
were  the  stimuli  that  awakened  in  the  Dunkers  a  con- 
sciousness of  kind,  and  influenced  them  to  imitate  the 
doctrines  and  practices  of  those  to  whom  they  felt  them- 
selves socially  akin. 

Likewise,  conscious  unlikeness  to  the  members  of  the 
state  churches  is  at  the  bottom  of  the  Dunkers'  doctrine 
of  the  Lord's  Supper.  The  first  thing  that  excited  their 
opposition  to  the  rite  as  observed  in  the  tolerated  church- 
es was  the  fact  that  people  of  the  sort  they  described 
as  "unregenerate"  were  admitted  to  the  Lord's  table. 

Whether  such  people  were  not  good  is  beside  the  ques- 
tion. They  were  different  from  the  Dunkers  socially,  i.  e. , 
they  were  of  a  different  social  class  from  that  to  which 
Mack  and  his  friends  belonged,  and  therefore  did  not 
live  the  kind  of  life  that  the  Dunkers  thought  they  should 
live  in  order  to  be  recipients  of  the  Lord's  Supper.  That 
fact  led  to  an  interpretation  of  their  conduct  that  unfitted 
them  in  the  eyes  of  the  Dunkers  for  participation  in  so 
sacred  a  rite. 

Furthermore,  when  criticism  of  the  rite  had  once  be- 
gun, it  was  easy  to  proceed  with  it  further.  Conscious- 
ness of  kind  suggested  imitation  of  the  primitive  Chris- 
tians in  the  observance  of  the  rite.  That  is  shown  by  the 
assertion  repeated  even  to  tiresomeness  by  the  Dunkers, 
that  they  are  the  true  followers  of  the  primitive  Chris- 
tians. This  imitation  gave  rise  to  the  positive  elements 
in  the  Dunkers'  doctrine  of  the  Lord's  Supper.  The  New 
Testament,  as  the  organic  law  of  their  new  society,  sug- 
gested a  full  meal  eaten  in  the  evening.  This  was  con- 
firmed by  the  history  of  the  rite  in  the  early  church. 

This  feeling  of  likeness  to  the  primitive  Christians  al- 
so led  to  the  adoption  of  the  rite  of  Feet  Washing  accord- 
ing to  the  practice  of  the  Apostles  recorded  in  Jno.    13. 


THE  BUNKERS'  DOCTRINES  49 

The  commandment  of  Jesus  there,  confirmed  them  in  their 
position. 

Their  doctrine  of  the  state  was  an  outgrowth  of  the  same 
sort  of  reasoning.  The  government  had  made  itself  ob- 
noxious to  them.  On  matters  which  they  felt  should,  on 
Protestant  principles,  be  ]ef  t  to  the  individual  conscience, 
it  persecuted  them.  It  was  identified  with  every  social 
institution  against  which  they  revolted  with  all  the 
strength  of  their  moral  natures. 

The  reason  of  the  Dunkers'  refusal  to  bear  arms,  and 
to  take  oaths  lay  in  a  similar  opposition  to  a  government 
that  oppressed  them,  as  that  which  provoked  resistance 
by  the  early  Christians  to  war  and  the  use  of  the  oath, 
and  also  by  the  Jews  ia  the  period  preceding  the  advent 
of  Christ.*  They  were  keenly  conscious  of  a  difference 
between  themselves  and  the  governing  class  and  all  per- 
sons that  were  connected  with  the  latter,  f  Feeling 
themselves  right  before  God,  they  necessarily  regarded 
as  wrong  those  beliefs  and  practices  of  their  enemies, 
which  were  in  any  way  responsible  for  the  harsh  conduct 
of  the  latter  towards  them.  What,  then,  could  be  more 
wrong  than  the  state  and  the  clergy,  the  very  instruments 
of  their  oppression?  War  must  be  wrong,  because  it  was 
the  instrument  by  which  innocent  and  good  men  were 
made  to  suffer. 

The  oath  must  be  wrong,  because  it  was  the  sacred  in- 
strument of  the  state,  and  the  state  abused  the  righteous; 
because  it  was  used  by  men  that  hated  the  just;  because 
it  was  an  instrument  of  evil  consecrated  by  a  religious 
sanction.  Scripture,  of  course,  became  a  weapon  of  de- 
fence. Of  all  the  Anabaptists  only  those  of  Muenster  be- 
lieved in  war.     They  held  to  it  because  of  their  doctrine 

♦See  Charles,  "Slavonic  Enoch"  49: 1,  2. 

fSpener,  who  never  left  the  Lutheran  church,  although  the  leader  of  the 
Pietists,  believed  war  God-ordained.    See  his  "Bedencken",  1: 14. 


50  .  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

of  the  present  millennial  kingdom  of  Christ  on  earth. 
Thus,  it  is  clear  that  the  ideals  of  the  Dunkers  arose 
out  of  their  recognition  of  the  differences  between  them- 
selves and  their  more  numerous  and  more  powerful,  but 
less  pious,  opponents.  The  recognition  of  these  differ- 
ences grew  out  of  conflicts,  which  were  due  to  differences 
in  mental  and  moral  characteristics.  These,  in  turn, 
originated  in  the  diversity  of  social  classes,  which,  again, 
was  due  to  a  mixture  of  population.  But,  again,  the  het- 
erogeneity of  social  composition  resulted  from  the  physi- 
cal nature  of  the  country.  Therefore,  the  ultimate  cause 
of  the  social  phenomena  that  gave  rise  to  the  doctrines 
of  the  Dunkers  was  the  peculiar  physical  nature  of  that 
part  of  Germany  in  which  the  sect  originated.  Had  it 
been  a  secluded  region,  into  which  various  kinds  of  peo- 
ple could  not  go,  and  where  perforce  the  population  must 
have  become  homogeneous,  the  sects  of  German  religious 
history  could  not  have  risen  there.  Religious  differences 
are  due,  in  the  last  analysis,  to  social  differences. 


CHAPTER  III. 


The  Dunker  Organization:    Its  Origin. 

Two  circumstances  suggested  to  Mack,  his  ideal  of  the 
church  viz.,  that  his  doctrines  demanded  an  organ  of 
concrete  expression  and  that  the  existing  churches  were 
hostile  to  him  and  his  doctrines. 

From  the  conflict  of  opinions  there  had  emerged  the 
doctrines  already  described.  They  related  to  life, 
organization  and  conduct,  not  to  pure  thought.  There- 
fore, to  exist  simply  as  doctrines  would  not  do;  they  must 
have  concrete  means  of  expression.  Hence,  the  doctrines 
demanded  a  social  organization  for  their  realization,  and 
thus  gave  rise  to  a  positive  ideal  of  society.  Here  Mack 
differed  from  such  of  his  fellow  Pietists  as  Hochmann. 

The  circumstance,  however,  that  the  existing  social 
organizations  were  hostile  to  such  ideals,  and  that  conflict 
with  such  organizations  had  suggested  the  doctrines, 
demanded  the  creation  of  a  society  to  give  expression  to 
the  Dunker  ideals.  Thus  originated  the  ideal  of  a  social 
organization  that  was  not  hostile  to  the  Dunker  doctrines. 

Furthermore,  the  two  circumstances  named  determined 
the  nature  of  the  social  organization.  The  former  con- 
ditioned the  form  of  the  society,  in  that  it  must  be  such 
that  it  was  fitted  to  realize  the  ideals  that  had  risen  in 
opposition  to  those  of  the  orthodox  Churches.  The  latter 
determined  that  it  must  be  different  from  the  organizations 
with  which  the  Dunkers  had  come  into  conflict.  Naturally 
it  would  differ  from  these  organizations  on  the  points  in 
dispute.  Therefore,  its  conditions  of  membership,  its 
rites,  its  ministry  and  its  method  of  organization  must 
be  different.  This  gave  the  new  society,  as  well  as  its 
doctrines,  a  decidedly  negative  tendency.  Its  laws  were 
stringent,  but  were  negative.  Its  character  was  stern. 
It  was  severely  protestant. 


52  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  EUR  OPE. 

It  was  said  above  that  the  ideal  was  suggested  by  con- 
flict. A  more  detailed  description  of  the  social  and 
physical  conditions  that  existed  in  the  region  where  the 
organization  originated  will  show  us  the  cause  of  the 
conflict. 

The  physical  features  of  southwestern  Germany  are 
such  as  to  favor  great  complexity  of  population.  It  is  a 
somewhat  mountainous  country,  yet  it  is  not  so  rough 
that  it  forbids  easy  access  through  its  valleys  to  all  its 
parts.  The  Rhine  valley  furnishes  a  great  natural 
channel  for  currents  of  migration  both  from  Switzerland 
on  the  south  and  from  all  the  countries  lying  to  the  north, 
contiguous  to  the  Rhine.  Its  natural  fertility  attracted 
a  comparatively  dense  population.  It  had  long  been  the 
mixing  ground  for  the  peoples  of  Western  Europe.  Wave 
after  wave  of  migration  had  swept  over  it.  The  result 
was  a  very  composite  population.  This  complexity  of 
social  composition  was  partly  ethnic,  but  at  the  close  of 
the  seventeenth  century  it  was  more  largely  political  and 
social. 

These  physical  features  made  it  inevitable  that  it 
should  have  classes  of  conqueror  and  conquered,  feudal 
lord  and  serf,  priest  and  layman,  since  sufficient  time 
had  not  elapsed  to  enable  the  governing  classes  to  unify 
the  population  completely. 

The  broken  character  of  the  country,  however,  also 
provided  secluded  districts  in  close  proximity  to  each 
other.  A  mountain  or  a  river  formed  a  barrier  to 
frequent  communication  in  the  days  before  modern  means 
of  travel  had  over-come  these  obstacles  to  social  inter- 
course. This  developed  diversity  of  population  in  the 
country  as  a  whole,  while  it  determined  that  such  secluded 
regions  should  become  homogeneous.  Furthermore, 
these  physical  features  determined  the  small  political 


THE  BUNKER  ORGANIZATION  53 

divisions  in  the  period  between  the  break  down  of  feudal- 
ism and  the  modern  period  of  German  unification.  They 
had  much  to  do  also  with  the  heterogeneity  of  mental  type 
and  disposition  in  Germany  as  a  whole  that  accounts  for 
the  turmoil  and  strife,  both  political  and  religious, 
characteristic  of  the  Reformation  and  Post- Reformation 
periods. 

The  physical  environment  had  determined  that  the 
composition  of  the  population  of  Wittgenstein,  the  district 
where  the  Dunkers  originated,  should  be  less  complex 
than  in  some  other  parts  of  this  valley.  Goebel  describes 
the  region  as  rough,  stony  and  unfruitful.*  It  is  also  a 
district  isolated  somewhat  by  mountains.  These  two 
facts  served  to  repel  rather  than  to  attract  outsiders  to 
its  confines.  Its  unproductiveness  and  its  isolation, 
moreover,  had  effected  a  lessening  of  the  distance  be- 
tween its  rulers  and  their  subjects.  In  the  first  place, 
because  it  was  a  poor  country,  it  happened  that,  the 
rulers  did  not  have  the  splendor  that  would  have  separated 
them  from  their  poorer  subjects.  In  the  next  place, 
isolation  prevented  the  emulation  of  rulers  with  a  more 
splendid  court,  and  gave  time  the  opportunity  to  mould 
the  rulers  and  ruled  into  a  social  unity.  Its  meager 
economic  advantages  and  its  isolation  hindered  any 
considerable  immigration,  so  that  the  population  was 
largely  autogenous  in  its  origin.  These  circumstances 
conditioned  a  homogeneity  in  the  subject  population 
itself. 

This  homogeneity  of  the  population  in  Wittgenstein 
explains  the  religious  toleration  that  was  the  policy  of 
that  country  at  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
and  that  made  it  a  place  of  refuge  for  the  persecuted  in 

*"Geschichte  d.  Christlichen  Lebens",  2:739. 


54  THE  DUNKEBS  IN  EUROPE 

other  places.*  For  toleration  of  any  sort  is  possible 
only  when  the  elements  of  the  population  have  been 
assimilated  to  an  ideal  more  or  less  common  to  them 
all,  or  when  the  population  is  autogenous  in  its  ori- 
gin. In  either  case  the  population  becomes  homogen- 
eous. Religious  toleration  is  dependent  on  social  homo- 
geneity, since  religion  is  only  one  of  the  ideals  a 
like  response  to  which  results   in  assimilation. 

The  religious  toleration  of  Wittgenstein  and  the  intol- 
erance of  adjacent  districts  were  stimuli  a  like  response 
to  which  brought  together  at  Berleberg  and  Schwarzenau, 
some  five  or  six  hundred  persecuted  Pietists,  Separatists, 
Enthusiasts  and  Mennonites.f 

After  these  people  from  different  regions  had  assem- 
bled in  Wittgenstein,  they  found  themselves  in  an  entire- 
ly new  environment.  Secondary  stimuli  that  they  had 
not  yet  encountered,  began  to  work  upon  them.  These 
stimuli  consisted  of  the  ideals,  programmes  of  reform, 
doctrines,  and  methods  of  the  various  leaders  in  the  re- 
spective places  from  which  the  leaders  had  come,  but 
which  had  not  operated  upon  those  in  other  places,  be- 
cause of  the  distance  by  which  they  were  separated  and 
lack  of  communication.  Proximity  now  brought  these 
various  stimuli  into  the  environment  of  all  those  settled 
in  Wittgenstein. 

These  refugees  from  persecution  in  other  parts  intro- 
duced alien  elements  into  the  population  of  Wittgenstein. 
While  on  general  pietistic  principles  and  social  position 
they  were  one  with  the  population  of  Wittgenstein,  on 
minor  religious  points  they  differed  from   it,  and  those 

^Besides  Wittgenstein,  Prussia  and  the  Netherlands  were  the  only 
oountries  on  the  Continent  where  there  was  religious  toleration  at  this 
time. 

tGoebel,  "Geschichte  d.  Chris tlichen  Lebens,"  2:774. 


THE  DUNKER  ORGANIZATION  55 

from  each  place  differed  from  the  emigrants  from  every 
other  region.  This  circumstance  led  to  processes  of  con- 
flict and  selection.  Men's  responses  to  these  diverse 
stimuli  were  unlike  and  unequal.  Some  were  prepared 
to  respond  to  a  stimulus  favorably,  others  adversely. 
These  responses  gave  rise  to  the  parties  in  Wittgenstein. 
The  unequal  responses  marked  out  the  leaders  and  the 
followers.  Those  that  responded  most  heartily  became 
leaders  fully  possessed  by  the  ideal  to  which  they  res- 
ponded favorably.  Those  that  responded  less  heartily 
became  the  followers. 

In  this  environment  by  a  process  of  selection,  Alexand- 
er Mack  became  possessed  of  a  definite  programme  for 
the  organization  of  a  Christian  society.differentiated  from 
all  those  with  which  he  was  acquainted.  This  was  partly 
the  result  of  his  reaction  upon  his  experiences  as  a  Pie- 
tist, partly  of  his  response  to  the  ideals  presented  by 
Hochmann  and  others  of  his  friends  at  Schwarzenau, 
partly  of  his  favorable  response  to  the  stimuli  presented 
by  the  writings  of  Arnold  and  Felbinger,  and  partly  the 
result  of  his  experiences  with  the  orthodox  churches. 
Once  formulated,  this  ideal  was  presented  by  Mack  to  his 
friends  in  Schwarzenau.  This  then  became  a  stimulus 
to  which  they  had  to  respond  in  some  way.  Here  again 
conflict  and  selection  determined  the  original  members  of 
the  Dunker  church. 

It  was  under  the  conditions  just  sketched  and  by  the 
processes  described  that  the  Dunkers  took  their  beginn- 
ing in  1708  at  Schwarzenau,  in  Wittgenstein,  within  what 
was  later  known  as  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Hesse-Darmstadt. 

While  the  Dunker  church  has  always  refused  to  ac- 
knowledge any  man  as  its  founder,  yet  it  looks  back  to 
Alexander  Mack  as  the  one  who  had  the  most  to  do  with 
its  formation.     He  was  the  natural  leader  of  the  original 


56  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

band,  and  during  his  life-time  was  the  most  influential 
person  among  them  both  in  Europe  and,  later,  in  Amer- 
ica. The  Dunker  writers  of  later  times  speak  of  Mack  as 
"their  teacher,"  and  as  uone  of  their  number  who  was  a 
leader  and  speaker  of  the  word  in  their  meetings."* 
Mack,  born  in  1679,  and  brought  up  in  the  Reformed 
church,  was,  when  we  first  hear  of  him,  a  wealthy  miller 
at  Schriesheim  an-der-Bergstrasse.  This  was  probably 
his  birth-place.  Before  1708  he  had  left  Schriesheim, 
and  had  gone  to  live  at  Schwarzenau,  because  of  per- 
secution incident  to  his  interest  in  Pietism  and  Separa- 
tism,! as  appears  from  his  son's  words  in  the  Introduc- 
tion to  "A  Plain  View  of  the  Rites  and  Ordinances,  etc."  \ 
Aside  from  this  account  and  a  few  words  in  the  opening 
chapter  of  the  uChronicon  Ephratense,"  we  have  no 
knowledge  of  the  life  of  Mack  until  he  went  to  Schwar- 
zenau.    Here  he  became  acquainted  with  other   Pietists 

*  "Chronicon  Ephratense,"  Eng.  trans.,  p.  1;  Mack,  "A  Plain  View,  etc." 
quoted  in  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren,"  p.  38,  39. 

1 1  use  the  word  Separatism,  not  as  the  designation  of  any  sect,  but  sim- 
ply as  a  term  that  indicates  a  very  wide-spread  tendency  of  the  times. 

t  "It  pleased  God  in  his  mercy,  early  in  the  beginning  of  this  century  to 
support  his  'grace  that  bringeth  salvation,  and  which  hath  appeared  to  all 
men,'  by  many  a  voice  calling  them  to  awake  and  repent,  so  that  thereby 
many  were  aroused  from  tbe  sleep  and  death  of  sin.  These  began  to  look 
around  for  the  truth  and  righteousness,  as  they  are  in  Jesus,  but  they  had 
soon  to  see  with  sorrowful  eyes  the  great  decay  (of  true  Christianity)  al- 
most in  every  place.  From  this  lamentable  state  of  things  they  were  press- 
ed to  deliver  many  a  faithful  testimony  of  truth,  and  here  and  there  private 
meetings  were  established  besides  the  public  church  organization,  in  which 
newly  awakened  souls  sought  their  edification.  Upon  this  the  hearts  of 
the  rulers  vere  embittered  by  an  envious  priesthood,  Jand  persecutions 
were  commenced  in  various  places,  as  in  Switzerland,  Wuertemberg,  the 
Palatinate,  Hesse  and  other  placas.  To  those  persecuted  and  exiled  per- 
sons the  Lord  pointed  out  a  place  of  refuge,  or  a  little  'Pella,'  in  the  land  of 
Wittgenstein,  where  at  that  time  ruled  a  mild  count,  and  where  some  pious 
countesses  dwelt.  Here  liberty  of  conscience  was  granted  at  Schwarzenau, 
which  is  within  a  few  miles  of  Berleberg." — Brumbaugh,  op.  cit. 


THE  B  UNKEB  OB  GANIZA  TION  57 

and  separatists  that  had  been  driven  thither  by  the  per- 
secutions in  neighboring  districts,  the  most  noted  of 
whom  was  Hochmann,  whose  beliefs  were  noticed  in 
the  previous  chapter. 

It  was  in  a  district  where  the  doctrines  of  such  people 
were  received  by  the  rulers,  as  well  as  by  the  people, 
that  Mack  lived  for  some  time  previous  to  1708.  From 
all  parts  of  the  country  around,  men  and  women  of  similar 
opinions  had  come  into  Wittgenstein.  *  Here  was  a  coun- 
try where  all  kinds  of  sectarians  were  protected  in  their 
opinions.  What  Mack's  opinions  had  been  before  this 
we  do  not  know  in  detail,  but  from  the  account,  quoted 
above,  it  is  probable  that  he  had  held  opinions  at  Schries- 
heim  that  made  him  the  object  of  persecution  there.  If 
so,  his  removal  to  Schwarzenau  was  a  step  that  would 
tend  naturally  to  accentuate  his  separatistic  proclivities. 

As  the  companion  of  Hochmann,  Mack  had  the  oppor- 
tunity of  visiting  many  different  communities  of  Baptists 
(Taufgesinnten)  in  Germany,  t  In  this  way  he  became 
acquainted  with  the  various  views  held  by  different  com- 
munities of  these  sectarians.  This  experience  not  only 
confirmed  him  in  his  separatism,  but  the  enforced  com- 
parison of  the  doctrines  with  which  he  met  led  him  to  an 
independent  study  of  the  subjects  that  were  under  dis- 
cussion, and  the  formation  of  idiosyncratic  opinions.  % 

After  studying  the  matter  for  some  time  he  found  him- 
self unable  to  be  satisfied  with  the  moderate  position  of 
Hochmann  on  some  points  of  organization.  With  the  lat- 
ter he  was  agreed  as  to  the  necessity  of  an  internal  (mys- 
tical) life  corresponding  to  the  outward  profession,  as  to 

*  Goebel,  2:  759  f. 

t  Mack's  "A  Plain  View,"  quoted  in  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Breth- 
ren", p.  39. 
%  Ibid,  p.  36  f . 


58  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

baptism  being  only  for  adults,  the  office  of  the  Holy  Spir- 
it in  the  selection  and  qualification  of  ministers,  the  func- 
tion of  governments,  the  Lord's  Supper  being  only  for 
the  regenerate,  Christian  perfection,  final  restoration  of 
the  lost,  and  as  to  the  low  estate  of  matrimony  compared 
with  celibacy.* 

But  Mack  was  not  content  with  these  positions.  He 
had  come  under  the  influence,  not  only  of  Hochmann,  but 
also  of  Gottfried  Arnold,  t  The  latter  had  been  profess- 
or of  Church  History  at  Giessen,  1697-1698.  He  was  a 
most  pronounced  separatist,  and  wrote  voluminously  on 
the  life  in  the  early  Christian  churches,  with  a  view  to 
showing  that  the  churches  of  his  times  had  departed 
widely  from  the  life  and  organization  of  the  church  of  the 
early  centuries  of  Christianity.  He  did  more  than  any 
other  one  to  develop  and  apply  the  doctrine  then  held,  at 
least  in  theory,  by  all  theologians  of  the  Protestant 
churches,  that  true  Christianity  is  Bible-Christianity, 
and  that  the  early  church  is  its  best  interpreter.  X 

These  two  men  had  a  most  profound  influence  on  Mack's 
course.  But  Mack  Reacted  upon  them  and  reached  a  po- 
sition independent  of  them  both.  He  was  satisfied  neith- 
er with  the  mystical,  unorganized  separatism  of  Hoch- 
mann, nor  with  the  negative  criticism  of  Arnold.  He 
wished  to  see  embodied  in  an  organized  community  the 
elements  of  truth  that  he  recognized  in  both.  This  em- 
bodiment, the  unorganized  Pietists  gathered  together 
from  all  parts  of  Germany  and  Switzerland  to   Wittgen- 

*See  Chapter  II,  also  Mack's  "A  Plain  View,  etc.",    quoted  in  Holsinger, 
"History  of  the  Tunkers",  p  113  f. 

flbid,  p.  77.    Jeremias  Felbinger's  influence  on  Mack  accounts  for   some 
doctrines.    See  "A  Plain  View,  etc.",  Holsinger,  p  81. 

%  See  his   "Erste  Liebe,"  and  "Unpartaische  Kirchen-und-Ketzer  His- 
torien",  passim. 


THE  D  UNKEB  OR  OANIZA  TION  59 

stein,  and  who  consisted  of  men  of  all  shades  of  opinion, 
did  not  afford.  * 

In  the  conflict  of  ideals,  therefore,  which  presented 
themselves  to  Mack,  there  arose  in  his  mind  the  ideal  of  a 
Christian  society  that  was  different  from  that  of  the  orth- 
odox church,  on  the  one  hand,  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
from  the  ideal  of  the  church  as  a  mystical,  unorganized 
fellowship  based  on  the  recognition  of  certain  Pietistic 
teachings  concerning  conduct,  held  by  Hochmann  and 
his  friends.  This  ideal  was  that  of  a  society  based  upon 
the  New  Testament,  interpreted  in  the  light  of  the  his- 
tory of  the  primitive  church,  as  its  organic  and  statute 
law,  with  a  definite  organization.^ 

Consequently  Mack  set  about  assemblying  those  who 
held  like  opinions  with  a  view  to  their  organization  into  a 
community  in  which  these  desirable  objects  could  be 
attained.  Finally,  in  1708  ueight  persons  consented 
together  to  enter  into  a  covenant  of  a  good  conscience 
with  God,  to  take  up  all  the  commandments  of  Jesus 
Christ  as  an  easy  yoke,  and  thus  to  follow  the  Lord  Jesus, 
their  good  and  faithful  shepherd,  in  joy  and  sorrow,  as 
his  true  sheep,  even  unto  a  blessed  end",  to  quote  the 

*  "Those  who  were  brought  together  there  from  the  persecutions,  though 
they  were  distinguished  by  different  opinions,  and  also  differed  in  manners 
and  customs,  were  still,  at  first,  all  called  Pietists,  and  they  among  them- 
selves called  each  other  brother.  But  very  soon  it  appeared  that  the  words 
of  Christ,  Matthew  18,  where  he  says,  'If  thy  brother  shall  trespass 
against  thee,  go  and  tell  him  his  fault  between  thee  and  him  alone,  etc.'", 
could  not  be  reduced  to  a  proper  Christian  practice,  because  there  was  no 
regular  order  yet  established  in  the  church.  Therefore  some  returned 
again  to  the  religious  denominations  from  which  they  had  come  out,  be- 
cause they  would  not  be  subject  to  a  more  strict  Christian  discipline;  and 
to  others  it  appeared  that  the  spiritual  liberty  was  carried  too  far,  which 
was  thought  to  be  more  dangerous  than  the  religious  organizations  they 
had  left".— Mack,  UA  Plain  View,  etc.",  quoted  in  Brumbaugh,  "History  of 
the  Brethren",  p  36. 


60  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  EUROPE. 

quaint  description  written  by  Mack's  son.  *  There  were 
five  men  and  three  women.  Two  were  from  Hesse-Cassel, 
two,  or  three,  from  Schriesheim,  one  or  two  from  Basle, 
Switzerland,  and  two  from  Bareit,  Wuertemberg.f  After 
they  had  come  to  an  agreement  as  to  the  necessity  of 
forming  a  church,  they  decided  to  be  rebaptized,  because 
baptism  is  the  door  into  the  church.  They  believed  that 
they  had  not  been  members  of  the  true  church  of  Christ 
hitherto,  since  it  had  not  yet  been  organized,  and  since 
they  had  not  received  the  baptism  that  they  believed  was 
the  only  Christian  baptism.  Therefore,  as  the  first  step 
to  be  taken  in  their  new  venture,  they  requested  Mack  to 
baptize  them  "according  to  the  example  of  the  primitive 
and  best  Christians,  upon  their  faith".:):  But  Mack  did 
not  consider  himself  baptized,  and  therefore  could  not 
baptize  others.  In  the  difficulty  they  decided  to  fast  and 
pray  that  they  might  have  the  guidance  of  Christ  him- 
self in  the  matter.  Mack  believed  in  a  kind  of  Apostolic 
Succession,  but  it  was  not  one  that  was  dependent  on 
men's  hands.  Therefore  the  following  expedient  was 
adopted  as  the  direction  of  Christ.  They  cast  lots  to 
determine  who  should  baptize  Mack.  He,  in  turn,  bap- 
tized the  others.  This  satisfied  their  determination  to 
be  "baptized  by  the  church  of  Christ",  for  they  consider- 

*Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren7',  p37.  Brumbaugh  thinks 
that  a  part  of  this  Introduction  was  an  original  document  printed  at 
Schwarzenau,  but  I  have  seen  no  evidence  for  such  a  conclusion.  See  Brum- 
baugh, p  43  n. 

fThe  exact  names  and  former  residence  of  these  first  eight  members  it 
is  not  possible  to  determine.  Ecclesiastically,  two  had  been  Lutherans  and 
the  other  six  members  of  the  Reformed  church.  The  striking  fact,  to 
which  Ritschl  has  called  attention  in  his  "Geschichte  d.  Pietismus",  that 
the  Reformed  church  was  much  more  prolific  of  sects  than  the  Lutheran, 
is  exemplified  by  the  composition  of  the  membership  of  the  first  body  of 
this  denomination.    See  Brumbaugh,  p.  30. 

JMack,  "A  Plain  View,  etc.",  Brumbaugh,  p  39. 


THE  D  UNKER  OR  GANIZA  TION  61 

ed  this  person  designated  by  the  Holy  Spirit  himself. 
The  name  of  the  person  upon  whom  the  lot  fell,  by  com- 
mon agreement,  always  remained  a  secret. 

This  first  baptism  occurred  in  the  solitude  of  the  early 
morning,  in  the  Eder  river,  a  small  stream  that  flows 
past  Schwarzenau,  sometime  in  the  year  1708.  *  After 
they  had  come  up  out  of  the  water,  and  had  changed  their 
clothing,  the  old  record  tells  us  that  "they  were  made  at 
the  same  time  to  rejoice  with  great  inward  joy  fulness, 
and  by  grace  they  were  deeply  impressed  with  these 
significant  words.  'Be  ye  fruitful  and  multiply' ". 

Thus,  Mack's  ideal  of  a  social  organization  originated 
as  follows: 

1.  The  doctrines  suggested  by  a  consciousness  of  un- 
likeness  to  the  orthodox  Christians  demanded  a  means 
for  their  realization. 

2.  What  kind  of  an  organization  it  should  be  was 
determined  by  this  same  consciousness  of  kind.  It  was 
an  ideal  that  originated  in  opposition,  on  the  one  hand, 
to  that  realized  in  the  organizations  already  in  existence, 
both  orthodox  and  sectarian.  On  the  other  hand,  it  was 
an  ideal  the  character  of  which  was  determined  by 
opposition  to  the  non-ecclesiastical,  mystical  ideal  of 
fellowship    advocated  by  Hochmann. 

Like  the  doctrines,  Mack's  ideal  of  a  social  organiza- 
tion was  born  of  conflict.  The  elements  of  which  it  was 
made  up  were  selected  out  of  a  multitude  that  the  social 
and  religious  conditions  of  the  time  suggested.  In  large 
measure,  they  were  selected  by  Mack  because  they  ex- 
pressed the  opposition  he  felt  to  the  social  organizations 
representing  elements  of  the  population  unlike  that  to 

*  Mack,  "A  Plain  View,  etc".,  in  Brumbaugh's  "History  of  the  Breth- 
ren", p  40.  We  have  three  lists  of  names,  one  of  which  differs  from  the 
other  two.    See  Brumbaugh,  p  30. 


6*  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

which  he  belonged.  In  short,  the  ideal  of  an  organization, 
realized  in  the  Dunker  church,  was  produced  by  a  heter- 
ogeneity in  the  population,  which  in  turn,  was  condition- 
ed by  the  natue  of  the  environment. 

Thus  was  inaugurated  the  sect  that  came  to  be  known  as 
"Taufers,"  or  "Tunkers,"  because  of  their  mode  of  bap- 
tism, but  who  at  first  called  themselves  simply '"Breth- 
ren." Insignificant  as  that  beginning  may  have  seemed 
to  the  superficial  observer  of  the  time,  it  was  the  origin 
of  a  religious  body  which,  together  with  others  like  it, 
has  had  great  influence  upon  American  social  and  politi- 
cal life  in  certain  states  of  the  Union,  and  that  today  is 
contributing  not  a  little  to  the  solid  citizenship,  and  to  the 
national  prosperity,  and  something  to  the  culture  of  our 
country.  To  the  student  of  the  social  condition  of  Ger- 
many at  that  time  it  is  interesting  for  the  light  it  throws 
on  the  quality  of  German  religious  thought,  and  on  the 
character  of  the  German  people  of  the  lower  classes  of 
that  period,  and,  most  important  of  all,  from  our  stand- 
point, it  gives  one  an  interesting  glimpse  into  the  pro- 
cesses by  which  human  societies  originate,  and  according 
to  which  they  develop. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


The  Development  and  Close  of  the  Movement  in 

Europe. 

Whenever  a  number  of  persons  have  deliberately  come 
to  the  same  conclusion  on  a  doctrine  or  an  ideal,  and  on 
the  basis  of  that  similarity  have  united  in  association  for 
a  common  purpose,  their  zeal  for  the  accomplishment  of 
that  purpose  varies  directly  with  the  development  of  the 
consciousness  of  kind.  That  is  to  say,  their  zeal  will  be 
great  or  small,  on  the  one  hand,  according  as  they  are 
conscious  of  their  likeness  to  each  other,  and,  on  the  oth- 
er, according  as  they  recognize  their  unlikeness  to  their 
opponents. 

This  principle  explains  the  growth  of  the  Schwarzenau 
congregation  and  the  origin  of  other  Dunker  churches. 
The  organization  had  now  been  formed  at  Schwarzenau. 
It  was  small,  being  composed  of  but  eight  people.  But 
these  were  all  united  in  purpose.  Discussion  of  the  dif- 
ferent doctrines  had  selected  them  from  the  mass  of  Pie- 
tists at  Schwarzenau,  and  had  made  real  their  potential 
similarity.  Only  those  had  entered  the  organization  as 
charter  members  who  were  thoroughly  convinced  of  the 
truth  of  the  positions  held  by  Mack. 

A  consciousness  of  likeness  among  the  members  of  an 
association,  however,  is  sharpened  by  the  conciouness 
that,  as  a  group,  they  are  different  from  other  groups  in 
the  population.  The  intensity  of  their  zeal  is  dependent 
on  this  consideration  also,  for,  if  they  did  not  feel  that 
they  were  different  from  other  groups,  they  would  not 
experience  a  desire  to  bring  others  to  their  own  way  of 
thinking.  Thus,  consciousness  of  kind  develops  zealous 
activity. 

Continued  like  response  to  these  two  classes  of  stimuli 


64  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  E  DR  OPE 

helped  to  make  perfect  the  consciousness  of  kind  which 
membership  in  the  same  social  class,  like  response  to 
persecution  by  the  tolerated  religions,  and  a  more  or  less 
extended  period  of  acquaintance  at  Schwarzenau  had  gen- 
erated among  the  first  Dunkers.  Therefore,  to  begin 
with,  Mack  had  a  church  composed  of  members  who 
were  of  one  mind  on  the  doctrines  held  and  on  the  pur- 
pose of  the  organization.  With  a  united  organization  and 
a  definite  program  it  was  possible  for  the  Dunkers  to 
make  a  very  deep  impression  on  the  other  Pietists  at 
Schwarzenau.  Consequently,  the  growth  of  the  church 
there,  for  a  time,  was  very  rapid. 

However,"  the  manifestation  of  zeal  results  in  a  further 
development  of  likemindedness.*  Cause  and  effect 
change  places.  As  consciousness  of  likeness  among  the 
members  of  a  society  increases,  the  consciousness  of  like- 
ness among  the  social  groups  in  a  population  decreases, 
unless,  indeed,  the  population,  as  a  whole,  is  rapidly  be- 
coming unified.  Hence,  after  a  period  of  success  among 
the  population  at  Wittgenstein,  the  activity  and  success 
of  the  Dunkers  raised  up  opposition.  Naturally,  it  took 
the  shape  of  discussion,  since  Wittgenstein  did  not  allow 
persecution.  Gruber's  Questions  and  Mack's  Answers 
thereto  are  the  evidences,  t 

There  are  two  ways  in  which  a  society  multiplies  its 
congregations,  (1)  by  missionary  preaching,  and  (2)  by 
colonization.  The  first  method  arises  when  the  surplus 
energy  of  the  congregation  has  no  promising  field  for  its 
exercise  in  its  own  vicinity.  This  condition  may  come 
about  by  the  absorption  of  all  likeminded  persons  in  the 
vicinity,  or  by  the  growth  of  an  active  opposition,  or 
both.  It  arises  according  to  the  law  of  least  effort.  The 
energy  seeks  the  line  of  least  resistance.     The  second 

*  See  Ross,  "Foundations  of  Sotiology,"  p  96. 
t  See  Mack's  "A  Plain  View,  etc.",   p.  72  f. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  65 

may  arise  because  of  persecution  in  times  when  that  is 
the  mode  of  expressing  consciousness  of  unlikeness,  or, 
from  response  to  economic  opportunities,  or,  rarely  from 
a  like  response  to  opportunities  of  social  service. 

At  first  the  zeal  of  the  Dunkers  had  a  field  for  its 
expression  among  the  inhabitants  of  Wittgenstein.  But 
after  a  time,  probably  according  to  the  law  of  rhythm, 
their  success  in  winning  adherents  lessened.  The  zeal 
of  the  Dunkers,  obeying  the  law  of  least  effort,  then  led 
them  to  seek  converts  in  other  parts  of  the  country. 
Naturally,  Mack  went,  or  sent  men,  to  the  people  with 
whom  he  had  become  acquainted  on  his  journeys  with 
Hockmann.     There  converts  were  made. 

These  principles  enable  us  to  understand  the  facts  of 
the  early  history  of  the  Dunkers.  Mack  and  his  com- 
panions had  felt  deeply  impressed  with  the  necessity  of 
obedience  to  the  command  of  God  to  Noah,  "Be  ye  fruit- 
ful and  multiply' \  * 

Accordingly  they  threw  themselves  earnestly  into  the 
work  of  spreading  their  beliefs.  So  successful  were  they 
that  within  the  first  seven  years  of  their  history,  as  an 
organization,  they  had  not  only  gathered  a  considerable 
congregation  at  Schwarzeuau,  "but  here  and  there  in  the 
Palatinate  there  were  lovers  of  the  truth,  and  especially 
was  this  the  case  at  Marienborn,  where  a  church  was 
gathered,  "f  There  are  four  places  which,  we  hear,  con- 
tained members  of  the  Dunker  faith.  They  are  Schwar- 
zenau, Crefeld,  Marienborn  and  Ebstein.  Besides  these 
places  we  are  told  that  there  were  scattered  members 
here  and  there  in  the  Palatinate,  and  a  few  in  Switzerland. :(: 
This  seems  to  have  been  the  widest  extent  of  the  Dunker 

*  Ibid,  p.  x. 

t"A  Plain  View,  etc.",  p  xi.     . 

JIbid,  p  xi;  cf.  "Chronicon  Ephratense'',  p  247. 


66  THE  D  TINKERS  IN  E  UR  OPE 

movement  in  Europe,  and  this  lasted  only  a  comparative- 
ly short  time. 

Such  zeal  demanded  a  response.  If  the  population  to 
which  the  appeal  is  made  is  homogeneous  and  there  is 
mental  and  moral  resemblance  between  it  and  those 
that  come  as  missionaries,  as  was  largely  the  case  at 
Schwarzenau,  the  response  is  favorable.  In  case,  how- 
ever, the  population  of  the  place  to  which  the  missionaries 
go  is  heterogeneous  and  there  is  but  slight  conscious- 
ness of  likeness  between  the  majority  of  the  people  and 
those  that  present  an  ideal,  then  the  response  of  this 
part  of  the  people  naturally  will  be  hostile.  This  latter 
condition  prevailed  in  general  at  that  time  in  southwest- 
ern Germany  and  Switzerland.  The  population  was  com- 
posite. The  majority  of  the  people  were  not  like  Mack 
and  his  fellow-missionaries  in  mental  and  practical  re- 
semblances. Hence,  they  did  not  respond  favorably  to 
the  ideals  the  Dunkers  presented.  Therefore,  as  well  as 
converts,  the  Dunkers  also  made  enemies,  who  stirred  up 
persecution  against  the  Dunker  converts.  As  a  result  of 
the  persecution  the  members  in  Switzerland  and  the  Pal- 
atinate had  to  flee.  A  part  of  them  removed  to  Marien- 
born.  These  immigrants  together  with  some  from  other 
places  constituted  the  church  at  that  place. 

In  most  cases  it  is  probable,  however,  that  the  stimulus 
of  economic  opportunity  played  some  part  in  the  deter- 
mination of  the  points  at  which  other  congregations  should 
be  established.  It  was  difficult  for  such  large  numbers 
of  people  to  make  a  living  at  Schwarzenau.  Therefore, 
after  the  common  fund  was  exhausted,  some  of  them 
were  forced  to  seek  other  places  in  which  to  live.  Some 
went  to  Marienborn  and  some  to  Ebstein  and  together 
with  refugees  from  Switzerland  and  the  Palatinate,  form- 
ed the  original  members  of  churches  in  those  towns. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  67 

As  soon  as  these  people  settled  in  a  place,  they  felt  it 
incumbent  upon  themselves  to  bear  witness  to  their  faith. 
This  testimony  became  a  stimulus  to  which  the  people 
and  the  rulers  perforce  responded.  Some  responded 
favorably,  some  unfavorably.  Persecution  originated  in 
the  unfavorable  responses,  and  where  the  Dunkers  were 
not  protected  by  a  policy  of  toleration,  it  drove  them  out. 
That  happened  to  be  the  case  at  Marienborn,  where  per- 
secution closed  the  history  of  the  Dunker  congregation. 
Some  of  them  went  back  to  Schwarzenau,  and  some  to 
Crefeld. 

What  became  of  the  members  at  Ebstein  we  can  only 
conjecture.  Two  of  the  Dunker  ministers  in  Europe, 
Christian  Libe  and  Abraham  Dubois  were  from  Ebstein. 
The  former  went  to  Crefeld,  the  latter  to  Schwarzenau. 
From  this  it  is  possible  to  suppose  that  the  members  of 
the  congregation  at  Ebstein  went  to  one  of  the  two  places 
just  named.*  What  occasioned  the  break  up  of  the  con- 
gregation at  Ebstein  we  do  not  know.  Thus,  in  1715 
there  were  but  two  congregations  of  Dunkers  in  Europe, 
one  at  Schwarzenau  and  one  at  Crefeld.  t 

We  turn  now  to  interpret  in  some  detail  the  history  of 

*"A  Plain  View,  etc."  p  xi. 

tit  is  scarcely  possible  to  infer  from  the  places  spoken  of  in  the  list  of 
ministers  of  the  Dunker  church  previous  to  1715,  given  in  the  Introduction 
to  "A  Plain  View,  etc.,"  that  there  were  members  iu  other  places.  Dur- 
ing the  time  from  the  organization  of  the  church  to  1715,  the  following 
men  were  called  to  the  office  of  the  ministry:  John  Henry  Kalkleser  from 
Prankenthal;  Christian  Libe  and  Abraham  Dubois  from  Ebstein;  John  Nass 
from  Norton;  Peter  Becker  from  Dillsheim;  John  Henry  Trout  and  his  broth- 
ers, Heinrich  Holzapple  and  Stephen  Kock,  of  whose  nativeplaces  we  are  not 
told;  George  B.  Ganz  from  Umstatt;  and  Michael  Echerlin  from  Strasburg. 
All  of  these  became  ministers  at  Crefeld,  except  Kalkleser,  Dubois,  Ganz 
and  Echerlin,  who  were  at  Schwarzenau.  Of  other  members  in  the  places 
named  we  know  nothing.  If  there  were  others  besides  these  ministers  they 
must  have  removed,  or  were  too  few  to  form  a  congregation,  for  we  hear  of 
no  churches  in  those  places. 


68  THE  DUNKEBS  IN  EUROPE 

these  two  congregations,  Schwarzenau  and  Crefeld. 

The  origin  of  the  -first  of  these  has  been  noticed  in 
Chapter  II.  Of  the  subsequent  history  of  this  congrega- 
tion down  to  1713  we  know  very  little.  Located  in  a  land 
where  there  was  religious  toleration  it  enjoyed  apparently 
an  undisturbed  prosperity.  It  is  probable  that  the 
large  numbers  of  people  that  had  gathered  in  Wittgen- 
stein from  various  parts  of  the  country,  fleeing  thither 
from  persecution,  united  with  the  Dunkers.  Goebel  has 
a  remark  that  doubtless  refers  to  this.  He  says,  quot- 
ing Count  Carl  Gustavus,  that  at  Schwarzenau  (and  Elsoff) 
there  were  over  three  hundred  families  gathered,  and  in 
Berleberg  (especially  in  Homrighausen)  there  were  about 
as  many  families.  Many  of  these  had  allowed  themselves 
to  be  baptized  in  the  Eder  by  immersion  in  1709.*  As 
the  Dunkers  were  the  only  immersionists  in  the  region, 
so  far  as  we  know,  this  probably  refers  to  them. 

In  this  congregation  during  the  period  before  1713  two 
interesting  features  appeared,  communism  and  celibacy. 
Sometime  during  this  period  of  the  history  of  this  con- 
gregation Alexander  Mack,  the  originator  of  the  move- 
ment, put  his  property  into  the  common  fund  of  the 
congregation.  The  quaint  description  of  this  transaction 
is  found  in  the  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  the  history  of 
the  Community  at  Ephrata,  Pennsylvania,  founded  by 
Conrad  Beissel.  It  says,  "The  Schwarzenau  Baptists 
arose  in  the  year  1708;  and  the  persons  who  at  that  time 
broke  the  ice,  amid  much  opposition,  were  Alexander 
Mack,  their  teacher,  a  wealthy  miller  of  Schriesheim-an- 
der-Bergstrasse,  who  devoted  all  his  earthly  possessions 
to  the  common  good,  and  thereby  became  so  poor  that  at 
last  he  had  not  bread  enough  to  last  from  one  day  to  the 

*Goebel,  "©eschichte  d.  Christlichen  Lebens",  2:774. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  69 

next,  etc."*  This  throws  an  interesting  light  on 
the  internal  arrangements  of  the  congregation.  This 
author  asserts  that  the  congregation  at  Schwarzenau 
practiced  a  kind  of  communism,  t 

These  same  writings  also' give  evidence  that  in  the 
early  history  of  the  congregation  at  Schwarzenau  celibacy 
was  the  rule.  That  this  practice  continued  for  seven 
years,  and  was  then  given  up  is  all  that  we  know  about 
it. 

Just  what  caused  this  congregation  to  give  up  these 
features  we  are  not  told.  In  1713,  however,  Mack  ex- 
cuses the  Dunkers  for  having  practised  them  thus: 
"That  we,  however,  after  baptism  had  difficulties  to 
overcome  concerning  marriage,  labor  and  many  other 
points,  is  true ;  for  before  our  baptism,  while  we  were 
yet  among  the  Pietists,  we  were  not  otherwise  taught  by 
those  who  were  deemed  as  great  saints.  Hence  we  had 
much  contention  until  we  gave  up  our  imbibed  errors. " % 
It  is  probable,  however,  that  social  changes  were  primary 
among  the  influences  that  led  to  their  abandonment. 
The  social  unrest  that  had  characterized  the  period  fol- 
lowing the  influx  into  Wittgenstein  of  the  diverse  social 
elements,  when  the  persecuted  of  other  regions  fled 
thither    for    protection,   had  gradually  given  place    to 

*  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  1.    Eng.  trans. 

fThis  has  been  denied  by  some  later  Dunker  writers.  For  example, 
the  author  of  the  Memoir  of  Alexander  Mack,  probably  James  Quinter, 
judging-  from  the  initials,— J.  Q.,  which  are  prefixed  to  the  English  trans- 
lation of  Mack's  "A  Plain  View,  etc",  says  that  Mack  lost  all  his  money  by 
paying  fines  for  the  members  of  his  congregation.  Part  of  it  doubtless 
went  in  this  way,  but  it  is  probable  that  the  most  of  it  was  used  in  the 
common  expenses  of  the  congregation.  See  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  2 
and  Gruber's  Query  37  with  Mack's  Answers  to  it  in  "A  Plain  View,  etc.," 
p87. 

'A  Plain  View,  etc.,"  Question  37,  p  87. 


70  THE  D UNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

social  assimilation,  and  social  peace.  The  enthusiasm 
born  of  unsettled  social  conditions  was  superceded  by 
the  calm  deliberation  that  follows  social  homogeneity. 
Fanaticism  had  yielded  to  sober  thought  and  action. 

All  this  had  come  about  because  the  population  had 
gradually  become  more  homogeneous.  At  first  the  differ- 
ent elements  of  the  population  were  in  conflict.  Ideals, 
modes  of  thought,  and  habits  clashed.  Gradually,  how- 
ever, as  the  people  became  acquainted  and  came  to  see 
good  qualities  in  each  other,  they  developed  a  resem- 
blance to  each  other,  or,  in  case  this  did  not  occur  and 
the  one  party  was  not  strong  enough  to  vanquish  the 
other  in  discussion  and  social  position,  conflict  made  way 
for  toleration.  Either  result  made  for  more  settled 
conditions  of  society  in  Wittgenstein. 

Moreover,  after  a  time  the  immigrants  settled  down  to 
steady  occupations.  Peace  gave  opportunity  for  pros- 
perity. Economic  prosperity  is  the  eternal  enemy  of 
fanaticism.  There  was  no  further  need  of  a  communistic 
sharing  of  goods,  and  on  the  disappearance  of  that  feature 
there  followed  the  building  up  of  private  property  and 
individual  homes.  With  the  death  of  fanaticism  there 
naturally  ensued  the  giving  up  of  belief  in  celibacy. 

While  these  experiments  had  no  influence  on  the  history 
of  the  church  in  general,  they  had  significance  for  the 
early  history  of  the  church  in  America.  In  Beissel's 
community  at  Ephrata,  Pennsylvania,  both  of  these 
features  were  very  prominent,  and  the  strength  of  their 
appeal  to  some  of  the  Dunkers  at  Germantown  shows 
that  this  incident  at  Schwarzenau  had  not  been  forgotten.* 

The  congregation  at  Schwarzenau  was  not  disturbed 
by  persecution  during  this  period,  but  its  activity  incited 
at  least  one  of  the  orthodox  opponents  of  the  Dunkers, 

*See  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  102. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  71 

viz.,  Ludwig  Gruber,  to  combat  them  by  skillfully  framed 
questions,  to  which  the  Dunkers  were  asked  to  reply. 
Mack  as  leader  of  the  congregation  answered  these 
questions  in  writing.  His  reply  was  considered  by  the 
congregation  such  an  excellent  apology  for  the  Dunker 
beliefs  that  it  was  published  by  the  church  at  Sehwar- 
zenau  in  July,  1713.  Sometime  later  there  was  published 
with  it  a  tract  called,  "A  Plain  View  of  the  Rites  and 
Ordinances  of  the  House  of  God,  Arranged  in  the  Form 
of  a  Conversation  between  a  Father  and  Son".  This  set 
forth  more  fully  the  positions  of  the  Dunkers.*  Thus 
the  first  book  of  the  Dunkers  grew  out  of  consciousness 
of  kind.f 

The  incidents  in  the  history  of  this  congregation  from 
1713  down  to  1720  have  left  no  trace.  Evidently  it  pros- 
pered in  its  religious  freedom  under  the  Count  of  Witt- 
genstein. But  in  1719  on  the  death  of  Count  Henry 
of  Wittgenstein,  the  ruler  that  had  protected  them 
in  their  freedom  to  worship  as  they  pleased,  perse- 
cution broke  out  against  them,  according  to  Goebel,  and 
caused  them  to  remove  to  Friesland  and  ultimately  to 
America.:):  Whether  all  the  congregation  of  Dunkers 
at  Schwarzenau  left  with  this  party  we  do  not  know.  The 
administrator  of  the  Count  at  Schwarzenau  in  1720  could 
say  concerning  this  only,  "that  for  a  long  time  many  pi- 

*These  two  tracts  are  translated  by  Holsinger  in  his  ''History  of  the 
Tunkers,  etc."  p  45  f,  tog-ether  with  a  translation  of  the  Introduction  writ- 
ten by  Alexander  Mack  Jr.  in  January,  1774.  Holsinger  called  his  chapter 
"Mack's  Book."  They  have  been  translated  and  published  in  pamphlet 
form  by  the  Brethren's  Publishing  Company,  Mt.  Morris,  111'*  1888. 

fEvidentlyj  in  the  eyes  of  the  separatists  of  Schwazenau,  Mack  came  out 
best  in  the  discussion,  as  most  of  them  joined  the  Dunkers  the  next  year. 

tGoebel,  "Geschichte  d.  Christlichen  Lebens,"  2:776. 


72  THE  D  TINKERS  IN  E  UR  OPE 

ous  people  have  lived  around  here,  of  whom  no  one  heard 
any  thing  bad,  but  perceived  that  they  conducted  them- 
selves in  a  wholly  quiet  and  pious  manner,  and  by  no  one 
had  a  complaint  been  made  of  them.  There  were  about 
forty  families  of  them,  about  two  hundred  persons,  that 
lately  have  betaken  themselves  entirely  out  of  the  land, 
of  whom  it  is  said  that  they  were  Anabaptists  ( Wieder- 
taeuf  er. )  The  rest  of  those  who  yet  live  about  Schwarzenau 
are  Catholics,  Lutherans  and  Reformed  in  religion.  How- 
ever, whether  any  of  the  above-named  persons,  who  are 
forbidden  the  Kingdom,  stay  about  here,  is  unknown  to 
me."*  Evidently  Goebel  has  given  the  place  of  their  final 
destination,  not  the  place  to  which  they  went  immediately 
on  their  leaving  Schwarzenau.  In  1720  the  emigration 
was  not  to  America,  but  to  Wester  vain,  West  Friesland.  f 
This  occurred  the  next  year  after  Peter  Becker  and  his 
party  had  left  Crefeld  for  America. 

In  Friesland  the  congregation  continued  its  existence 
under  Mack's  leadership  until  1729,  when  at  least  116 
members  came  with  Mack  to  America  in  the  ship  Allen 
from  Rotterdam,  via  Cowes.J  In  the  nine  years'  sojourn 
in  West  Friesland  some  additions  were  made  to  the 
membership.**  Thus  closed  the  history  of  the  original 
congregation  of  Dunkers  in  Europe. 

The  Crefeld  congregation  had  a  shorter  history.  It 
began  in  1715  by  the  removal  thither  of  the  members 
from  other  places. 

Those  that  chose  Crefeld  did  so  for  three  reasons,  (1) 

*Goebel,  "Geschichte  d.  ChristlichenLebens,"  op.  cit.,  ibid. 

fMorgan  Edwards  quoted  in  Rupp's,  "Religious  Denominations,"  p  92  f; 
See  also  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren,"  p  45. 

JSee  the  list  of  these  in  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren"  p  54. 
Also  see  "Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Second  Series,  17:18. 

**Bruxnbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  54,  93. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  73 

because  of  the  situation  and  economic  opportunity,  (2) 
because  of  religious  toleration  at  Crefeld,  (3)  because  of 
a  consciousness  of  likeness  between  themselves  and  the 
large  number  of  Mennonites  there,  a  people  in  most 
respects  like  the  Dunkers.  Not  all  the  members  of  the 
congregation  at  Crefeld  were  from  the  original  congrega- 
tion at  Schwarzenau.  Some  were  from  Marienborn 
whence  they  had  been  driven  by  persecution,  possibly 
some  from  Ebstein,  while  it  is  probable  that  many  of  the 
members  in  Switzerland  and  the  Palatinate  mentioned  by 
Alexander  Mack  Jr.,  went  to  Crefeld,  when  persecution 
drove  them  from  those  places.  Thus,  diverse  elements 
entered  into  the  composition  of  the  Crefeld  congregation, 
a  circumstance  which  throws  light  upon  the  checkered 
history  of  this  church. 

This  congregation  thrived  well  for  a  time.  It  was  in  a 
prosperous  manufacturing  community  under  the  religious 
freedom  granted  by  the  King  of  Prussia.  Moreover, 
Crefeld  was  a  city  in  which  there  had  assembled  a  great 
many  Mennonites  that  had  been  driven  from  Switzerland 
by  persecution.*  The  latter  sect  had  many  points  of 
belief  in  common  with  the  Dunkers,  and,  furthermore,  it 
had  sympathy  for  all  those  that  were  persecuted  for 
conscience  sake.  There  was  in  Crefeld  much  intercom- 
munication between  the  two  sects,  Dunkers  and  Mennon- 
ites. Many  of  the  Mennonites  joined  the  Dunkers,  just 
as  they  did  later  in  Pennsylvania,  t  On  the  whole,  there- 
fore, this  city  was  a  favorable  one  for  the  development  of 
a  strong  Dunker  congregation. 

But  sometime  between   1715  and   1719  discord  arose, 
and  a  division  of  the  congregation  occurred.     It  came 

*Mueller,  "Gesctiichte  d.  Bernischen  Taeufer",  p  194,  228.    Also  Goebel, 
"Geschichte  d.  Christlichen  Lebens",  2:846. 
fSee  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  51. 


74  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

about  in  this  way:  A  young  minister  in  the  Dunker 
church  at  Cref eld  by  the  name  of  Hoecker  formed  an 
attachment  for  the  daughter  of  a  merchant  of  Crefeld 
who  was  himself  a  member  of  the  Dunkers,  but  who  had 
been  a  Mennonite,  and  who  still  preached  for  the  latter 
for  800  gulden  a  year.  Hoecker  was  a  more  scholarly 
man  than  most  of  those  in  the  ministry  among  the 
Dunkers  at  Crefeld,  and  was  very  active  in  the  work. 
This  created  a  jealousy  on  the  part  of  some  of  the  other 
ministers  against  him.  The  young  lady,  to  whom  he 
finally  was  married  by  her  father,  was  not  a  member  of 
the  Dunker  congregation.  This  gave  those  who  were 
envious  of  Hoecker  an  opportunity  to  express  their 
consciousness  of  kind.  Christian  Libe,  who  had  been  a 
very  zealous  preacher  of  Dunker  views  in  all  parts  of 
the  Rhine  Valley,  and  had  been  imprisoned  for  two  years 
on  the  galleys  for  preaching  forbidden  doctrines  in  Basle, 
together  with  four  other  single  ministers  decided  to 
place  the  ban  upon  Hoecker.*  It  is  uncertain  whether 
their  reason  was  that  he  had  married  out  of  the  church, 
or  that  he,  a  minster,  had  married  at  all,  contrary  to  the 
teaching  of  Paul  in  1  Cor.  7.  The  fact  that  the  ministers 
who  decided  to  put  Hoecker  under  the  ban  were  single 
men  as  well  as  the  asceticism  of  some  of  the  early 
Dunkers  gives  color  to  the  latter  explanation.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  fact  that  George  Adam  Martin  says  that 
Libe  afterwards  married  out  of  the  congregation  contrary 
to  his  own  principles  in  the  case  of  Hoecker,  and  the 
hostile  attitude  of  the  Dunker  church  from  early  times 
down  to  the  present  to  marriages  with  anyone  outside 
the  Dunker  church  would  tend  to  sustain  the  latter 
hypothesis.     However,   whatever    the  reason  given,   it 

*For  the  details  of  Libe's  imprisonmeDt  on  the  galleys   see  Muller, 
"Geschichte  d.  Bern.  Taeufer",  p  226  f. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUR  OPE  75 

is  probable  that  the  real  cause  of  the  trouble  was  a 
feeling  of  difference  between  Hoecker  and  the  others 
which  can  be  traced  back  to  the  diverse  social  ele- 
ments that  entered  into  the  composition  of  the  mem- 
bership of  this  congregation. 

John  Nass,  the  elder  in  charge  of  the  church,  and 
Peter  Becker,  another  minister  and  the  friend  of  Hoecker 
were  not  in  favor  of  excommunicating  him.  As  a  com- 
promise they  offered  to  suspend  him  from  participation 
in  the  Lord's  supper.  In  this  the  majority  of  the 
congregation  agreed.  But  this  mild  measure  did  not 
satisfy  Libe  and  his  partisans.  They  declared  that 
Hoecker  was  under  the  ban,  and  proceded  to  treat 
him  as  such.  In  that  day  this  was  a  very  severe  punish- 
ment, as  no  member  of  the  church,  no  matter  whether 
related  to  him  by  the  closest  ties,  was  to  have  anything 
to  do  with  the  one  under  the  ban,  not  even  to  sit  at  the 
same  table,  or  have  any  conversation  with  him.* 

The  two  parties  could  not  agree.  Potential  resem- 
blance did  not  exist.  The  longer  they  discussed  the 
matter,  the  stronger  each  side  became  in  its  conviction 
that  it  was  right.  The  resulting  division  was  what  might 
have  been  expected  under  the  circumstances.  The  con- 
gregation was  made  up  of  people  from  many  different 
parts  of  Europe.  They  had  not  been  subjected  to  the 
same  environment.  In  the  short  time  that  they  had 
formed  a  congregation  in  Cref eld  they  had  not  yet  had 
time  to  become  perfectly  assimilated.  There  were  two 
extremes  among  these  separatists  that  constituted  the 
Dunkers.  The  one  was  inclined  to  be  mystical  and  aus- 
tere; the  other  was  more  moderate  in  its  tendencies,  t 
Here  the  two  came  to  an  open  clash. 

*See  Mack,  "A  Plain  View,  etc.,"  p  59,  60. 

tSee  Goebel,  "Geschichte  d.  Christlichen  Lebens  "     843  f. 


76  THE  DUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

This  trouble  ruined  the  congregation  at  Crefeld.  At 
the  time  of  the  outbreak  John  Nass  is  reported  as  saying 
that  there  were  over  one  hundred  persons  who  contem- 
plated joining  the  Dunkers,  but  refused  to  do  so  on  ac- 
count of  the  trouble.*  The  outcome  of  it  all  was  that 
Hoecker  took  the  matter  so  to  heart  that  he  soon  died. 
His  death  only  added  fuel  to  the  flames  of  hate  already 
burning.  Peter  Becker,  the  friend  of  Hoecker,  soon 
afterwards  left  Crefeld  for  Pennsylvania.  With  him  went 
some  of  the  congregation.  The  seeds  of  discord  were 
carried  along  with  them  and  prevented  an  organization 
for  some  time  in  America,  t 

How  many  were  in  this  emigration  we  are  not  able  to 
say  definitely.  Brumbaugh  thinks,  on  the  basis  of  a 
statement  found  in  Goebel's  "Geschichte  d.  Christlichen 
Lebens,"  2:776,  which  has  been  referred  to  on  pages  71 
and  72  above,  that  about  two  hundred  from  Wittgenstein 
(probably  from  Schwarzenau)  went  with  Becker  to  Amer- 
ica.}: But  it  is  quite  probable  that  no  such  number  from 
any  place  accompanied  Becker.**  That  with  Becker  there 
went  the  larger  portion  of  the  congregation  at  Crefeld, 
or,  at  least,  the  portion  of  it  that  was  dangerous  in  the 
eyes  of  the  orthodox  clergy,  is  shown  by  the  reference 
to  this  migration  in  the  Acta  Synod    General,  1719,  21  ad 

*Martin's  Letter  quoted  in  "Chronicon  Ephratense,"  p249. 

f'Chronicon  Ephratense,"  p  3,  249. 

JSee  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren,"  p  49,  note  (2). 

**My  reasons  for  this  are  as  follows:  (1)  Because  Morgan  Edwards  in  his 
"Materials  towards  a  History  of  the  Baptists,"  written  in  1770,  says  that 
there  were  about  twenty  persons  who  came  with  Becker.  (Rupp's  "Relig- 
ious Denominations,"  p  92.);  (2)  because  the  "Chronicon  Ephratense"  sim- 
ply says  that  there  were  * 'several,"  which  would  hardly  be  the  adjective 
used,  had  there  been  any  such  number  as  two  hundred;  and  (3),  because  it  is 
probable  that  the  passage  of  Goebel  referred  to  does  not  have  any  refer- 
ence to  the  emigration  under  Becker,  but  to  the  removal  of  the  Dunkers 


M 0  VEMENT  IN  E UROPE  77 

44,  as  follows:  "The  preachers  of  the  Meuro  classe  have 
received  the  confession  of  faith  of  the  so-called  Dompel- 
aers  staying  at  Creyfelt,  and  they  have  sent  their  demon- 
stration' to  his  gracious  Majesty  the  King  of  Prussia. 
However,  this  Fratres  Meursanae  Synodi  report  with 
pleasure  that  these  Dompelaers,  who  have  have  been  so 
injurious  to  our  church,  have  taken  themselves  away  by 
water  and  are  said  to  have  sailed  to  Pennsylvania."* 

However,  some  ".members  were  left  in  Crefeld.  Over 
these  John  Nass  and  Christian  Libe  continued  to  preside. 
But  these  two  leaders  soon  fell  out.  John  Nass  called 
Libe  a  pill-monger  in  the  presence  of  the  congregation, 
and  then  withdrew  into  retirement  until  he  came  to  Amer- 
ica in  1733,  leaving  Christian  Libe  in  charge  of  the  con- 
gregation. The  church  did  not  prosper  under  the  leader- 
ship of  Libe.  George  Adam  Martin  reported  that,  "the 
Brethren  who  had  been  prisoners  withdrew,  the  whole 
congregation  was  given  up,  and  everything  went  to 
ruin."f  Libe  became  a  wine  merchant,  and  married  out 
of  the  church,  in  violation  of  his  own  rules  in  regard  to 
Hoecker. 

What  become  of  the  members  that  were  left  at  Crefeld 
it  is  impossible  to  say  positively.  Perhaps  some,  like 
John  Nass,  afterwards  went  to  America.  Doubtless, 
some  of  the  members  accompanied  Mack  to  West  Fries- 

from  Schwarzenau  to  West  Friesland  in  1719,  whence  they  finally  emigrat- 
ed to  America.  It  would  not  be  at  all  strange,  if  they  went  first  to  Crefeld, 
and  there  picked  up  some  members  of  the  congregation  that  had  remained 
behind  when  Becker  left  with  his  company  for  America,  and  thence  went 
on  to  West  Friesland.  This  referenca  in  Goebel,  on  this  hypothesis,  throws 
light  upon  Mack's  party,  but  none  whatever  upon  Becker's.  This  explan- 
ation also  has  the  advantage  of  resolving  the  difficulty  involved  in  Brum- 
baugh's theory. 

*Quoted  from  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren,"  p  51. 

t"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  248.  Why  Nass  called  Libe  a  pill-monger 
is  not  recorded. 


78  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

land  and  went  with  him  thence  to  America.  Some,  no 
doubt,  joined  the  Mennonites,  or  some  of  the  other  church- 
es at  Crefeld.  The  real  history  of  this  congregation 
closed  in  1719,  when  Becker  and  his  party  left  for  Amer- 
ica. 

The  difference  in  the  conditions  prevailing  at  Schwar- 
zenau  and  at  Crefeld  explains  the  difference  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  two  congregations.  The  physical  environ- 
ment of  Crefeld  was  different  from  that  of  Sehwarzenau. 
The  former  was  a  flourishing  manufacturing  town.  It 
had  become  famous  for  its  linen  weaving.  It  lay  in  the 
lower  valley  of  the  Rhine  much  closer  to  the  sea  and 
much  less  secluded  than  Sehwarzenau.  The  latter  was  a 
place,  shut  off  from  the  rest  of  the  world,  and  without 
the  economic  advantages  of  Crefeld. 

These  differences  in  the  physical  environments  had 
made  the  composition  of  the  Dunker  population  at  Crefeld 
much  more  heterogeneous  than  that  at  Sehwarzenau,  be- 
cause the  elements  of  the  congregation  at  the  former 
place  had  been  assembled  from  various  places  by  perse- 
cution, while  the  congregation  at  Sehwarzenau  had  been 
built  up  by  a  process  of  selection. 

Furthermore,  before  the  membership  of  the  Crefeld 
congregation  could  be  unified  by  a  like  response  to  the 
Dunker  doctrines  and  ideal  of  unity  for  a  long  period,  the 
conflict  of  two  ideals  divided  the  congregation.  This 
made  it  impossible  for  the  congregation  to  present  united- 
ly an  ideal  to  the  world,  and  prevented  the  pursuit  of  a 
policy  of  unification  and  consequently  the  growth  of  the 
church  there.     Consequently  it  went  to  pieces. 

The  physical  and  geographical  situation  of  Crefeld 
made  it  more  accessible  to  influences  from  England  and 
Holland  in  the  interest  of  colonization  schemes  in  Amer- 
ica, while,  on  the  other  hand,  the  more  general  conscious- 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  79 

ness  of  kind,  developed  by  kindred  experiences,  caused 
the  Dunkers  in  Crefeld  to  respond  favorably  to  the  Men- 
nonite  and  Quaker  schemes  of  colonization.  Thus,  the 
physical  environment  together  with  other  influences  de- 
termined the  presence  of  the  Dunkers  at  Crefeld,  made 
easy  the  withdrawal  of  any  dissatisfied  members,  when 
the  occasion  arose,  and  deter  mined  a  composite  member- 
ship in  the  congregation,  and  so  conflicting  ideals. 

At  Schwarzenau,  on  the  other  hand,  the  congregation 
was  gradually  built  up  out  of  elements  that  had  many 
points  of  similarity  and  therefore  were  capable  of  assim- 
ilation by  a  process  of  selection  in  response  to  the  ideals 
of  Mack,  instead  of  by  the  sudden  aggregation  of  ele- 
ments socially  unlike.  A  perfect  society  is  not  formed 
by  a  single  like  response  to  stimulus,  but  by  a  like  re- 
sponse repeated  often  enough  to  create  an  effective  like- 
mindedness.  This  the  twelve  years  of  like  response  to 
the  ideals  of  Mack  accomplished.  This  period  also  en- 
abled Mack  to  realize  his  ideal  of  unity  for  the  congre- 
gation. It  gave  him  time  to  weld  it  into  a  homogeneous 
whole. 

In  1719  the  political  conditions  in  Wittgenstein  changed. 
The  tolerant  prince  died,  and  was  succeeded  by  one  that 
had  been  subjected  to  different  conditions.  The  policy 
of  religious  freedom  gave  place  to  one  of  persecution  of 
all  sectarians.  A  like  response  to  this  stimulus  took 
about  200  of  the  Schwarzenau  Dunkers  to  Crefeld,  and 
thence  to  West  Friesland.  At  Crefeld  some  of  the  con- 
gregation that  had  remained  there  after  the  departure  of 
Becker,  conscious  of  their  likeness  to  Mack's  party,  re- 
sponded to  the  invitation  of  their  brethren  from  Schwar- 
zenau and  went  along. 

Thus,  on  the  whole,  Wittgenstein  was  a  political  en- 
vironment that  at  first  sheltered  and  then  became  hostile 


80  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  E  VR  OPE 

to  the  sectarians  of  peasant  origin.  It  was  a  religious 
environment  that,  for  a  time,  was  free  and  then,  after  the 
protection  of  the  Counts  of  Wittgenstein  was  withdrawn 
in  1719,  it  was  an  unfriendly  environment.  Hence,  the 
conditions  there  were  such  that  for  a  time  they  attracted 
people  from  many  parts  of  the  country,  and  subsequent- 
ly became  such  that  they  forced  certain  people  out. 

The  removal  of  this  congregation  to  America  was  the 
result  of  a  like  response  to  the  stimuli  of  their  enviro- 
nment in  Friesland,  and  of  their  prospective  home  in  the 
New  World,  coupled  with  a  like  response  to  the  ideals  of 
religous  and  political  liberty  presented  by  the  letters  of 
their  brethren  in  America,  and  the  advertisements  of  land 
companies,  of  William  Penn  and  of  the  sovereigns  of  Eng- 
land. That  some  of  their  comrades  in  faith  followed 
later  instead  of  going  with  them  was  due  to  the  unequal 
response  of  the  latter. 

The  members  of  the  congregation  at  Ebstein  and 
Marienborn  now  either  had  been  driven  by  persecution 
to  Crefeld  or  had  been  dispersed;  the  congregation  at 
Crefeld  had  been  divided,  and  the  major  portion  had  re- 
moved to  America;  and  the  original  congregation  at 
Schwarzenau  had  gone  to  Friesland,  and  finally  to  Pennsyl- 
vania. All  that  remained  of  the  movement  in  Europe  were 
the  broken  fragments  of  the  Crefeld  congregation,  and 
the  few  scatterd  members  throughout  the  Palatinate  and 
Switzerland,  if,  indeed,  any  were  left  in  the  latter  country. 
What  became  of  these  members  is  not  know.  Apparently 
the  movement  died  out  with  the  removal  of  these  two 
congregations,  for  George  Adam  Martin,  sometime  after 
1757,  was  able  to  say  without  fear  of  contradiction  that 
"not  a  branch  is  left  of  their  Baptist  business  in  all 
Europe."*    The  zeal  of  the  few  who  remained  in  Europe 

*Letter  quoted  in  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  248. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  E  UR  OPE  81 

grew  cold  and  they  went  back  to  the  state  churches,  or 
were,  again  drawn  into  "awakened"  circles  by  such  leaders 
as  Count  Zinzendorf ,  who  appeared  in  these  districts  in 
1730.  Some  few  may  have  crossed  the  ocean  to  join  their 
comrades  in  belief  in  America  in  the  years  that  followed 
the  two  great  Dunker  emigrations,  1719  and  1729.*  Thus 
closed  the  Dunker  movement  in  Europe,  to  find  a  more 
congenial  environment  in  America,  to  develop  from  a 
narrow  sect  into  a  respected  denomination  of  useful 
Christian  citizens. 

Sociological  Summary. 

How  many  Dunker s  there  were  in  Europe  we  do  not 
know.  It  is  impossible  to  form  an  estimate  of  any  value 
from  the  number  of  ministers  given  by  Alexander  Mack 
Jr.,  for  this  list  is  not  exhaustive,  and  the  Dunkers  did 
not  have  one  minister  to  a  congregation,  as  did  most  of 
the  Christian  churches  of  that  tiine.t 

On  the  basis  of  what  Goebel  says  as  to  the  number  of 
people  that  left  Schwarzenau  for  America  in  1720,  already 
referred  to,  it  is  possible  to  estimate  the  number  of  mem- 
bers at  Schwarzenau.  But  it  must  be  only  an  estimate, 
for  we  do  not  know  whether  all  the  members  there  emi- 
grated, and  we  cannot  be  sure  that  all  of  the  200  men- 
tioned were  Dunkers. 

As  to  the  numbers  at  Cref eld  we  are  totally  in  the  dark. 
We  know  that  about  twenty  came  to  America  with  Beck- 
er, and  it  is  probable  that  some  of  those  that  went  with 
Mack  to  West  Friesland  from  Crefeld  came  with  him  to 
America.  But  how  many  were  left  at  Crefeld  we  do  not 
know.     The  closest  approach  to  an  exact  figure  is  that 

*See  letter  of  John  Nass  to  his  son,  written  from  Germantown  in  1733; 
also,  Sauer's  letter  in  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren,"  p  108. 

fMack,  "A  Plain  View,  etc",  p  xi. 


82  TEE  D  UNKERS  IN  EUR  OPE 

given  by  Dr.  Brumbaugh  in  his  "History  of  the  Breth- 
ren." He  has  brought  together  a  list  of  225  members 
that  joined  the  church  in  Europe.  But  this  list  is  incom- 
plete, and  further  investigations  may  show  that  ther 
were  others.  More  definitely  than  this  it  is  impossible 
at  this  time  to  speak.  They  never  had  more  than  four 
congregations.  * 

Characteristic  of  both  congregations  was  their  zeal. 
With  the  abandon  generally  found  in  the  adherents  of 
new  sects  they  "were  the  more  powerfully  strengthened 
in  their  obedience  to  the  faith  they  had  adopted,  and  were 
enabled  to  testify  publically  in  their  meetings  to  the 
truth",  to  quote  the  words  of  Mack  Jr.  in  his  Introduc- 
tion to  "A  Plain  View".  This  resulted  in  the  rapid 
spread  of  their  faith,  but  also  in  the  active  opposition  of 
the  ministers  of  the  orthodox  churches.  Hence,  they 
were  called  upon  to  endure  persecutions.  In  these 
persecutions  the  leaders  were  soon  put  to  the  test  upon 
their  doctrine  of  the  non-resistance  of  evil.  That  they 
stood  the  test  is  shown  by  the  record,  "There  were 
those  who  suffered  joyfully  the  spoiling  of  their  goods, 
and  others  encountered  bonds  and  imprisonment",  f  On 
the  whole,  the  impression  that  is  made  on  one  as  he 
studies  the  few  remains  of  this  period  of  their  history  is 
that  the  members  of  these  first  congregations  were  men 
and  women  of  almost  terrible  earnestness.  One  can 
scarcely  appreciate  in  these  days  of  religious  peace  how 
intense  were  the  religious  emotions  of  those  days,  when 
religion  was  the  one  matter  of  universal  interest,  and 
when  for  their  opinions  men  were  often  called  upon  to 
die.     The  things  for  which  they  contended  now  appear 

*See  names  and  numbers  in  the  first  part  of  this  chapter. 

fMack's    Introduction    to  "A  Plain  View,  etc.",    p  xi;    Cf.  "Chronicon 
Ephratense"p  1. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  83 

trivial,  but  to  them  they  were  vital.  Into  the  discussion 
of  them  they  threw  all  their  powers  of  mind.  For  the 
defence  of  them  they  risked  all. 

The  explanation  of  this  fervor  is  to  be  sought  in  the 
conflict  born  of  diversity-  of  elements  in  the  population. 
As  these  elements  became  assimilated  the  conflict  was 
succeeded  by  toleration,  zeal  was  displaced  by  calm 
thoughtfulness,  and  the  willingness  to  die  for  one's  con- 
victions gave  place  to  calculating  consideration  of  one's 
own  safety  and  comfort. 

Another  characteristic  of  this  early  period  of  their  his- 
tory is  that  the  movement  was  not  clearly  differentiated 
in  practices,  and  doctrines  from  the  great  body  of  pie- 
tistic  separatists  of  the  time.  Men's  thoughts  had  not 
yet  become  clear  and  definite  as  to  just  what  should  be 
done.  The  relation  of  the  Dunkers  to  the  persecuting 
churches  was  clear  enough  even  from  the  beginning,  for 
it  was  in  opposition  to  them  and  their  doctrines  that  the 
ideals  of  Mack  had  come  to  conscious  expression.  But 
the  relation  of  the  Dunker  organization  and  doctrines 
to  the  other  sectarian  parties  and  beliefs  of  the  period  at 
first  was  rather  indefinite,  except  with  regard  to  the 
necessity  of  organization  and  the  emphasis  to  be  given  to 
certain  doctrines.  Therefore,  the  opposition  to  the  other 
sects  and  the  non-ecclesiastical,  religious  parties  was 
very  much  less  than  that  felt  towards  the  persecutors, 
and  for  this  reason  the  relation  of  the  Dunkers  to  them 
much  less  clear  and  definite. 

Moreover,  the  consciousness  of  likeness  to  many  of  the 
sects  made  for  this  lack  of  clear  definition  of  attitude  to- 
wards them.  Hence,  some  were  members,  doubtless, 
who  were  not  fully  convinced  of  all  the  positions  taken  by 
the  congregation,  but  were  in  general  agreement  with 
them,  while  some,  convinced  of  the  truth  of  the  doctrines, 


84  TEE  B TINKERS  IN  EUROPE 

were  not  members,  because  of  the  distance  from  a  Dun- 
ker  congregation  and  the  impossibility  of  removal  to 
Crefeld  or  Schwarzenau.  This  circumstance  gives  one 
the  impression,  at  first  glance,  that  there  was  no  organi- 
zation at  the  beginning.  On  the  contrary,  there  was  an 
organization,  but  naturally  it  was  not  as  definite  in  some 
respects  as  it  became  in  time. 

As  for  the  organization  of  the  Dunkers,  it  developed 
pari  passu  with  their  social  experience.  In  every  case, 
consciousness  of  likeness,  or,  on  the  other  hand, 
of  unlikeness  to  other  elements  in  the  population 
led  to  changes  in  the  organization.  In  Europe  the 
organization  developed  only  as  far  as  the  opposition  to 
the  orthodox  opponents  and  the  unorganized  separatists 
demanded  it.  There  is  no  record  that  there  was  any 
such  thing  among  them  in  Europe,  for  example,  as  an 
Annual  Meeting.  As  we  shall  see,  that  sprang  out  of  the 
opposition  of  the  Dunkers  to  Zinzendorf  and  his  sectarian 
allies  in  Pennsylvania.  The  local  congregation  was  the 
only  organization  among  the  Dunkers  in  Europe. 

Thus,  clearness  of  doctrinal  statement,  emphasis  upon 
certain  practices  and  clearly  defined  attitude  towards  oth- 
er organizations  and  parties  came  only  as  a  result  of  conflict 
due  to  consciousness  of  dissimilarity.  The  presence  of 
unlike  elements  in  the  population,  and  in  the  congrega- 
tion gave  rise  to  conflict. 

Moreover,  the  nature  of  the  composition  of  the  mem- 
bership of  the  Dunker  congregations  in  Europe  determin- 
ed the  attitude  of  the  organization  towards  the  individual. 
Thus,  in  the  congregation  at  Schwarzenau  there  were 
only  like  elements,  and  we  hear  of  no  coercion  of 
the  individual.  On  the  other  hand,  at  Crefeld,  the 
congregation  was  made  up  of  different  elements,  and 
there  a  policy  of  coercion  was   soon  attempted.     The 


MO  VEMENT  IN  EUROPE  85 

attempt  of  Libe  to  force  a  policy  of  uniformity  on  the 
congregation  in  the  matter  of  marriage,  illustrated  by 
his  attitude  towards  Hoecker,  is  a  case  in  point. 

Several  things  conspired  to  close  the  history  of  the 
Dunker  church  in  Europe: 

1.  Persecutions  made  flight  from  one  country  to  an- 
other necessary,  and  loosened  the  bonds  that  bound  them 
to  the  home  country.  This  also  helped  to  beget  the 
readiness  to  escape  to  any  country  where  liberty  of 
conscience  was  granted. 

2.  As  early  as  1682  William  Penn  had  conveyed  5000 
acres  of  land  in  Pennsylvania  to  Jacob  Tellner  of  Crefeld. 
Penn  had  already  in  1677  been  on  a  preaching  tour  to 
Germany,  and  had  met  many  of  the  people  there.  Tell- 
ner had  been  in  America  between  1678  and  1681.  Then 
in  1682  began  that  enterprise  that  finally  culminated  in 
the  organization  of  the  Frankfort  Land  Company,  of 
which  Pastorius  was  the  agent,  and  of  which  five  of  the 
members  were  residents  of  Frankfort,  two  of  Wesel,  two 
of  Lubeck,  and  one  of  Duisberg.  Nearly  all  of  them  were 
Pietists  in  the  general  sense  of  the  term.  The  object  of 
this  company  was  colonization. 

In  1683  Penn  sold  three  gentlemen  of  Crefeld,  viz., 
Remke,  Arets  and  Van  Bebber,  1000  acres  each.  Their 
aim  likewise  was  colonization.  Thus  it  becomes  evident 
at  a  glance  what  forces  were  set  at  work  among  these 
Cref elders  themselves  to  get  people  to  migrate  to  Penn- 
sylvania. As  a  result,  in  1683  a  colony  of  thirteen  emi- 
grants, of  whom  at  least  eleven  were  from  Crefeld,  sailed 
for  Pennsylvania,  where  they  founded  the  city  of  Ger- 
mantown.*  Most  of  the  members  of  this  colony  were 
Mennonites,  but  the  fact  that  fellowtownsmen  had  come 
to  this  country,  that  they  wrote  back  glowing  reports  of 

*See  Pennypacker,  "Historical  and  Biographical  Sketches,"  p  13  f. 


86  THE  DUNKEBS  IN  EUROPE 

its  advantages,  and  that  they  were  people  with  whom  the 
the  Dunkers  in  Crefeld  had  much  intercourse,  made  it 
very  easy  for  the  Dunkers  to  decide  where  to  go  when 
once  the  occasion  arose  for  their  removal.  The  owners 
of  this  land  naturally  saw  to  it  that  the  Crefelders  did 
not  lack  information  and  solicitation. 

Besides  the  influence  that  these  two  colonization  com- 
panies exerted  to  induce  emigration,  William  Penn  him- 
self was  leaving  no  stone  unturned  to  bring  to  the  atten- 
tion of  the  sturdy  Germans,  by  the  plentiful  use  of  print- 
er's ink,  the  advantages  offered  by  his  American  prov- 
ince.* In  addition  to  the  advertising  Pennsylvania  re- 
ceived from  these  private  parties,  Queen  Anne  of  England 
and  later  George  I.  sent  descriptions  of  their  colonies  in 
America  broadcast  throughout  these  parts  of  Europe,  f 
All  this  publicity  nob  only  incited  the  desire  to  migrate, 
it  also  gave  to  desire  direction. 

3.  The  general  social  conditions  were  bad.  The 
promise  of  a  better  land  with  greater  opportunities 
strengthened  the  appeals  of  the  companies  seeking  col- 
onists. These  facts  account  for  the  close  of  the  work 
at  Crefeld. 

4.  Once  a  body  of  the  Dunkers  were  in  America,  and 
were  experiencing  liberty  and  larger  economic  opportun- 
ities, their  letters  were  a  most  powerful  means  of  induc- 
ing those  that  remained  in  Europe  to  go  to  America. 
This  accounts  for  the  removal  in  1729  of  the  congregation 
that  had  settled  in  West  Priesland.     Most  of  the  mem- 

*See  Sachse,  "The  Fatherland",  in  Proceedings  of  Penna.  Ger.  Soc,  7: 
157  f. 

f"  Journal  of  the  House  of  Commons",  16:  597.  Rupp  in  his  reference  to 
this  in  his  "Thirty  Thousand  Names"  has  made  an  error  as  to  the  page. 


MO  VEMENT  IN  E  UR  OPE  87 

bers  of  the  two  congregations  in  Europe  had  gone  to 
America,  and  the  leading  spirits  among  the  Dunkers  were 
there  also.  Therefore,  there  was  every  reason  for  the 
scattered  members  that  remained  in  Europe  either  to 
migrate  thither,  or  to  join  some  other  church.  From 
1729  on  there  was  a  more  or  less  steady  stream  of  Dunk- 
ers from  Europe  to  America.  John  Nass  the  former  eld- 
er in  charge  of  the  Cref  eld  congregation  went  to  America 
in  1733,  and  some  of  his  children  a  few  years  later. 

5.  On  the  other  hand,  the  condition  of  things  in  the 
congregations  themselves  had  a  great  deal  of  influence 
upon  their  later  history.  Because  of  the  lack  of  homo- 
geneity in  the  membership  of  the  church  at  Crefeld, 
trouble  arose,  which  reinforced  the  appeals  of  the  Cre- 
f elders  in  America  to  the  Dunkers  in  Crefeld  to  emigrate 
thither. 

Environmental  conditions  had  assembled  Anabaptist 
people  at  Crefeld  and  at  Schwarzenau.  After  they  unit- 
ed with  the  Dunkers,  a  new  set  of  stimuli  was  brought  to 
bear.  The  Dunkers  at  once  began  to  hold  before  them 
the  ideal  of  unity.  This  tended  to  confirm  them  in  their 
decision,  and  further  to  differentiate  them  from  their 
neighbors.  But  the  ideal  of  unity  was  held  with  varying 
degrees  of  earnestness  by  different  members.  They  had 
come  together  from  different  parts  of  the  country  and 
had  been  exposed  to  various  influences.  Thus,  Christian 
Libe  had  been  subjected  to  a  harsher  treatment  than 
most  of  the  others.  He  had  been  banished  from  Basle, 
Switzerland,  as  an  Anabaptist.  He  had  been  forced  to 
work  on  a  galley  for  two  years  because  of  his  return 
thither  to  preach  his  beliefs  and  to  baptize.*  This  harsh 
treatment  had  engendered  an  austerity  of  spirit  that 

*See  "Chronicon  Ephratense,"  p  248;  Mueller,    "Geschichte    d.    Bern. 
Taeufer,"  p  226. 


88  THE  BUNKERS  IN  EUROPE 

heterogeneity  in  the  social  composition  of  the  church 
tended  to  bring  to  expression.  Dissension  produced 
further  differences  among  those  left  at  Crefeld,  as  it  did 
also  among  those  that  came  to  America.  It  prevented 
the  congregation  left  at  Crefeld  from  presenting  its  ideals 
so  effectively  to  those  that  had  not  yet  united  with  it.  It 
is  only  when  heterogeneity  is  on  the  whole  subordinate 
to  a  dominant  homogeneity  that  progress  without  disrup- 
tion is  possible.  In  Becker's  party  that  went  to  Amer- 
ica homogeneity,  though  imperfect,  prevailed. 

With  the  Schwarzenau  congregation  the  conditions  were 
different.  In  the  first  place,  the  homogeneity  of  the  soc- 
ial group  was  greater.  Then  during  the  twelve  years  of 
growth,  undisturbed  by  internal  dissension,  opportunity 
was  given  for  Mack  to  impress  his  ideal  upon  the  con- 
gregation, and  thus  make  the  homogeneity  yet  greater. 
Finally,  persecution,  suffered  in  common,  bound  the  mem- 
bership more  closely  together,  so  that  Mack's  ideal  of 
unity  was  realized.  Heterogeneity  of  the  population  in 
the  region  about  Schwarzenau  accounts  for  the  emigra- 
tion thence,  while  the  consciousness  of  their  kinship  with 
the  Dunkers  already  in  America,  coupled  with  the  great- 
er religious  and  economic  opportunities  there,  explains 
the  emigration  of  the  congregation  from  Friesland.* 

*See  Spencer,  "First  Principles,"  Sec.  174.  Also,  Giddings,  "Principles 
of  Sociology,"  p  400  f,  and  his  "Theory  of  Social  Causation,"  in  Publications 
of  the  American  Economic  Assoc,  Third  Series,  Vol.  V,  Part  II. 


>JTY 

OF 
s4L£0RN\£, 


PART  II      THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA. 


CHAPTER  I. 


Social   Conditions   in    America    Bearing   on 
Population. 

The  difference  between  social.conditions  in  Europe  and 
in  America  created  an  unstable  equilibrium  that  made 
movement  in  the  line  of  least  resistance  inevitable.  We 
have  noticed  the  condition  of  society  in  Europe,  which 
accounts  for  the  emigration  of  the  Dunkers.  We  must 
now  examine  in  some  detail  the  conditions  in  America, 
which  determined  where  they  should  go,  when  they 
decided  to  leave  Europe.  These  general  social  conditions 
may  be  classed  under  three  heads,  Political,  Economic 
and  Religious. 

1.     Political  Conditions  in  America,  with  Special 
Reference  to  Conditions  in  Pennsylvania. 

The  despotism  of  Europe  furnished  the  occasion,  at 
least,  for  the  foundation  of  the  free  American  colonies. 
Almost  all  the  colonies  were  founded  by  men  and  for 
men  who  were  fleeing  from  despotism.  However,  among 
the  colonies  there  were  vast  differences  in  respect  to  the 
liberty  granted  to  the  inhabitants.  For  example,  the 
political  liberty  enjoyed  by  the  middle  colonies,  especially 
by  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania,  was  much  greater  than 
was  that  of  most  of  the  New  England  colonies.  This  was 
due  to  the  fact  that  the  charters  granted  to  the  proprie- 
tors "went  farther  toward  guaranteeing  the  existence  of 


90  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

legislatures  within  the  colonies  than  did  those  which 
created  the  corporations".* 

This  democratic  tendency  was  strongest  in  Pennsylva- 
nia. Penn  himself  was  not  of  royal  blood.  He  belonged 
by  birth  to  the  great  middle  class.  By  religion  he  was 
associated  with  a  sect  that  drew  most  of  its  recruits,  not 
from  the  aristocracy,  but  from  the  middle  and  lower 
classes  of  society. 

Penn  identified  himself  with  the  colonists  to  an  extent 
never  attempted  in  any  other  country  or  colony,  f  He 
never  attempted  to  restrict  political  rights  to  the  mem- 
bers of  his  own  sect,  as  political  liberty  was  restricted  to 
members  of  the  dominant  sect  in  Massachusetts,  for 
example.  And  unlike  Carolina  and  Maryland  at  certain 
periods,  Pennsylvania  was  never  domineered  politically  by 
its  proprietor.  Further  as  contrasted  with  the  procedure 
in  Maine  and  in  Carolina,  the  scheme  of  government  for 
Penn's  Colony  was  submitted  for  approval  to  the  colo- 
nists. The  Council  instead  of  being  appointed,  was 
elected.  This  was  an  exception  to  the  general  rule  in  the 
colonies,  except  in  the  Carolinas  and  the  Jerseys,  where 
it  was  an  elective  body  in  a  qualified  way.  The  acts 
of  this  Council  the  governor  had  no  right  to  veto.  There 
was,  moreover,  an  elective  Assembly,  or  lower  house, 
which,  while  it  could  not  originate  legislation,  could  ratify 
or  refuse  to  ratify  measures  proposed  by  the  Council. 

It  should  be  noticed  further  that  in  1696,  inMarkham's 
Frame  of  Government,  the  right  was  given  to  the  Assem- 
bly to  initiate  legislation. :{:  In  spite  of  the  fact  that, 
when  Penn  returned  in  1700,  he  declared  that  the  frame 

*See  Osgood,  "American  Colonies  in  the  17th  Century,"  2:74,  254  f. 

tlbid,  p  256.  Also,  Pastorius'  Letter,  quoted  in  Pennypacker,  • 'Settle- 
ment of  Germantown,"  p  85. 

JOsgood,  "American  Colonies,  etc.,"  2:275;  Cf.  "Colonial  Records,"  1:48. 


SOCIAL  CONDITIONS  91 

of  government  granted  by  Markham  had  been  only  a 
temporary  expedient  during  his  absence  and  that  the  old 
frame  of  government  of  1683  was  again  in  force,  the 
Council  decided  to  take  what  was  best  in  both  the  old 
frame  and  Markham' s  frame  and  construct  a  new  scheme 
of  government.  The  result  was  the  Charter  of  Privi- 
leges, passed  in  1701,  and  confirmed  by  Penn.*  By  this 
charter  the  Assembly  was  made  the  only  house  of  legis- 
lation, while  the  Council  became  an  appointive  body, 
without  legislative  power,  but  with  power  to  act  simply 
as  an  advisory  board  to  the  governor.  Thus  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  eighteenth  century,  Pennsylvania,  more  than 
any  other  colony,  had  placed  political  power  in  the  hands 
of  the  colonists. 

It  was  in  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey  that  the 
establishment  of  courts  was  first  placed  in  the  hands  of 
the  legislature.  In  most  of  the  other  colonies  that  power 
was  in  the  hands  of  the  executive,  t 

While,  therefore,  in  some  of  the  other  colonies  the 
procedure  was  more  regular,  in  Pennsylvania  there  was 
a  nearer  approach  to  democracy.  Political  liberty  there 
was  of  wider  extent  than  elsewhere,  both  as  regards  the 
franchise  and  also  as  regards  the  power  of  the  people's 
representatives  in  shaping  the  government. 

Most  important  of  all  was  the  attitude  of  the  proprietor 
himself  to  his  province.  No  other  proprietor  set  out 
with  such  avowed  democratic  aims  as  did  Penn.  None 
conceived  of  his  duties  in  such  an  ethically  paternalistic 
fashion  as  he.  Consciously  Penn  had  aimed  to  make  for 
the  colony  a  government  that  should  have  primarily  as 
its  end,  nob  his  own  personal  power,  glory  or  wealth,  but 

*"Colonial  Records,"  2:56  f. 
tOsgood,  "American  Colonies,"  2:287. 


92  THE  DTJNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

"the  good  and  benefit  of  the  freeman  of  the  province".* 
The  Province  was  his  only  that  he  might  make  the  inhab- 
itants of  it  freer,  and  give  them  conditions  where  they 
could  live  as  brothers,  and  where  they  could  have  oppor- 
tunity to  realize  their  best  and  highest  ideals.  Primarily 
not  money  or  power  was  Penn's  aim,  but  to  provide  free- 
dom from  those  conditions,  political,  economic  and  relig- 
ious, that  made  the  Old  World  a  hard  place  for  the  com- 
mon people  to  live  in.  In. his  own  words  Penn's  Colony 
was  "a  holy  experiment"..  As  such  it  made  a  strong  ap- 
peal to  all  who  were  sufferers  from  despotism  in  Europe. 

2.  Economic  Conditions  in  Pennsylvania. 
In  a  new  and  wild  land,  where  industries  are  in  their 
infancy,  where  commerce  is  undeveloped  and  money  is 
scarce,  one  hardly  expects  good  economic  conditions. 
In  Pennsylvania  at  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth 
century  there  was  little  wealth.  But  bad  as  were 
the  conditions  here,  they  were  better  than  in  those  parts 
of  Europe  from  which  the  immigrants  came.  Money  was 
worth  much  more  than  in  Europe.  That  is  to  say,  it 
would  buy  more.  On  the  other  hand,  the  price  of  land 
was  low,  which  was  a  primary  condition  of  prosperity  for 
the  poor  agricultural  peasants  of  Europe.  About  1717  in 
Eastern  Pennsylvania,  where  land  was  considered  very 
high  in  price,  the  agent  of  George  I.  quoted  it  at  from  20 
to  100  pounds  sterling  per  100  acres,  t  Penn  offered  land 
to  all  who  would  come  at  the  rate  of  100  acres  for  40  shil- 
lings, or,  what  Fiske  says  was  equivalent  to  between  $40 
and  $50,  subject  only  to  the  quit  rent  of  one  shilling  per 
100  acres  per  annum.  J     In  1736,  147  acres  of  land   near 

*"Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,"  1:58,  63;    also  "Charter  and  Laws," 
p  515. 
tQuoted  in  Pennypacker,  "Historical  and  Biographical  Sketches,"  p  187. 

JFiske,  "Dutch  and  Quaker  Colonies, "  2:154. 


ECONOMIC  CONDITIONS  9S 

Ephrata,  Lancaster  county,  were  sold  for  66  pounds,  3 
shillings,  subject  to  the  usual  allowance  of  6  per  cent,  for 
roads  and  highways.  In  1754  this  same  parcel  of  ground 
sold  for  600  pounds.*  In  1732,  500  acres,  on  which  Lan- 
caster is  now  situated,  sold  for  31  pounds,  10  shillings,  t 
In  1717,  Penn's  commissioners  conveyed  400  acres  of 
land  in  Springtown  Manor,  Chester  county,  for  40  pounds.;): 
In  1701,  Logan  sold  for  Penn  1000  acres  in  East  Jersey 
for  300  pounds.**  In  his  prospectus  to  settlers  and  ad  vent- 
urers Penn  set  his  price  at  100  pounds  sterling  for  each 
5000  acres,  subject  to  the  quit  rent  of  1  shilling  for  each 
100  acres  per  annum.  He  also  offered  to  give  to  each  mas- 
ter who  brought  over  servants,  50  acres  for  every  ser- 
vant brought  over,  when  the  latter's  time  had  expired, 
with  a  quit  rent  of  2  shillings  per  annum.  To  those  who 
could  not  afford  to  buy  land  Penn  offered  to  rent  land  at 
the  rate  of  200  acres,  which  was  the  maximum  to  be  rent- 
ed to  any  one  man,  for  1  pence  per  acre  per  annum. ft 
Penn  sold  to  Thomas  Woolwich  of  Stafford,  England,  on 
March  22,  1681,  1000  acres  for  20  pounds  and  the  quit  rent 
of  1  shilling  per  annum  for  each  100  acres,  and  on  July 
27,  1681,  500  acres  more  at  the  same  rate.Jt  These  ex- 
amples will  serve  to  give  us  a  fairly  accurate  conception 
of  the  prices  of  land  that  prevailed  in  the  various  per- 
iods of  German  immigration. 

The  following  lists  of  prices  of  products  at  the  dates 

^Original  deeds  in  possession  of  the  Trustees  of  the  Society  of  Seventh 
Day  Baptists  at  Ephrata,  Penna. 

tSener,  "Lancaster  Townstead,"  in  Lancaster  County  His.  Soc,  Histor- 
cal  Papers,  5:122. 

tSener,  'Lancaster  Townstead"  in  Lancaster  County  His.  Soc,  Histor- 
ical Papers,  5:124. 

**Memoirs  of  Penna.  His.  Soc,  9:68. 

tfHazard,  "Annals,"  1:510,  518,  523. 

tJIbid,  1:501. 


94  THE  D  UNKEBS  IN  AMERICA 

given  are  interesting  as  showing  some  of  the  economic 
conditions  which  prevailed  in  Pennsylvania  in  those  ear- 
ly days:* 

1683: 

3  Milch  Cows  with  their  calves 10  pounds,  s.  d. 

Yoke  of  Oxen 8        " 

Brood  Mare 5        u 

Two  Young  Sows  and  Boar 1        ",        10  s 

Wheat 3  s  6d.per  bu. 

Oats 2  s  "     " 

Barrel  of  Molasses H    pounds. 

Beef  and  Pork  2d  per  pound. 

Spirits  per  gal ... .2s 

Provisions  for  one  yr.  for  family  of  five, 16  lbs.  17  s  6d. 

1686: 

Wheat 3  s,     English 

money,  or  3  s,  6  d,  American  money 

Pork  2d  per   lb. 

Beef 3i  d  "      " 

Wheat 3  s6d  per  bu. 

Rye i  crown  "    " 

Indian  Corn 2  s  "     " 

1687: 

Pork,  per  lb 2£  s. 

Butter  6  d. 

Rye,  perbu . 3  s8gro.,  *cr. 

Wheat 3  s  or  3  s.  6  d. 

Indian  Corn 7  groats  and  2s 

Lime 6  d. 

1690: 

Wheat 3  s  per  bushel. 

Barley 2  s    "        *« 

Qats  , 2s    "        « 

Indian  Corn 18  d.  "        " 

Cow  and  Calf less  than  4  lbs. 

Good  brood  mare 5  pounds. 

Beef 12  s   per  cwt. 

Pork    15  s     "        " 

Fat  Deer 1 J  s  each. 


*n 


"Penna.  Mag.  His.  and  Biog."  4:447  f. 


ECONOMIC  CONDITIONS  95 

In  Philadelphia,  1766:* 

Irish  Sheeting.. 2s  3d  peryd. 

Wide  Linen  check 2  a  5  d  per  ell. 

Wide  Irish  Linen 3  s  1  d  per  yd. 

Finer  Irish  Linen 3s9d     "     " 

Narrow  worsted  binding  for  cloths 12  s  6  d  pr.  gro. 

Bird  eye  gartering 1  lb  pr.  gross. 

Women's  clocked  (?)  worsted  hose llbl8spr.doz. 

Men's  grey  worsted  hose  No.  6 \  •«    "    "    " 

"finerNo.7 !.'...:2"4s"    " 

Tailor's  colored  thread  5s  6d  per  lb. 

Pins  No.  12 5  s  6  d  pr.  pkt. 

Gross,  Sleeve  buttons  No.  1 7  s. 

Ibid  No.  2 8  s. 

Ibid  No.  3 8  s  12  d 

Beaver  coating  per  yd 6sld 

Black  trunk 15  s 

In  1771  Corn  was  4  s  per  bu.,  Wheat,  5  s  per  bu.t 
In  1748  the  salary  of  a  school  teacher  was,  UA  free 
dwelling  in  part  of  the  school  house,  use  of  part  of  the 
school  lot,  ten  cords  of  wood,  half  being  hickory,  and  the 
sum  of  10  pounds  in  silver.  "J  Keith's  salary  in  the 
Friend's  School  in  Philadelphia,"  was  50  pounds  per  an- 
num with  a  house  for  his  family  to  live  in,  a  school  house 
provided,  and  the  profits  of  the  school  besides  for  one 
year.  For  two  years  more  his  school  was  to  be  made 
worth  120  pounds  per  annum."** 

These  are  sufficient  to  illustrate  the  opportunities  that 
Pennsylvania  offered  to  agriculturists  as  compared  with 
the  low  wages  of  laborers,  and  the  high  prices  of  land  in 

*Egle's  "Notes  and  Queries,"  3rd  Series,  2:108. 

tBrumbaugh  "His.  of  Brethren,"  284. 

tQuoted  in  Lancaster  His.  Papers  in  "Lancaster  His.  Soc.  Proceedings," 
3:100. 

**Proud's  "Pennsylvania",  1:345.  For  further  contemporary  accounts  of 
the  economic  condition  of  Pennsylvania  at  about  this  time  see,  Gabriel 
Thomas',  account  quoted  in  Hart's  "American  History  Told  by  Contempor- 
aries," 2:65-6s,  and  an  extract  from  Richard  Castleman's  "Voyage,  Ship- 
wreck and  Miraculous  Escape,"  Ibid,  2:74-77. 


96  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

the  Rhine  countries  of  Germany.  From  the  very  dis- 
trict whence  came  the  Schwarzenau  Dunkers  a  traveler 
so  late  as  1845  could  write,  "He  (the  traveler)  will  on  this 
excursion  observe  with  pleasure  an  absence  of  total  des- 
titution in  any  class  of  the  inhabitants;  but  that  a  large 
portion  of  the  population  stands  on  the  verge  of  great 
poverty,  while  a  still  greater  number  is  involved  in  pri- 
vations inseparable  from  the  increase  of  mouths  without 
a  corresponding  augmentation  of  the  field  of  labor,  will 
not  escape  him Here  we  shall  only  re- 
mark, that,  for  want  of  other  occupations,  the  wages  of 
the  laborers  are  exceedingly  low,  averaging  from  10  d  to 
1  s  per  diem  for  men,  and  7  d  to  8  d  for  women.  If  food 
be  given,  10  kreutzers,  or  3£  d  is  all  that  is  added  in  mon- 
ey. On  the  larger  farms  4  pounds  per  annum  is  the  pay 
of  the  farm  servants,  whose  board  is  valued  at  5  pounds. 
From  this  and  the  adjacent  districts  the  greatest  number 

of  emigrants  proceed  annually  to  America 

A  few  years  back  the  estimate  of  the  rental  of  the  famil- 
ies of  Handshuhshein,  according  to  which  they  were  tax- 
'  ed,  averaged  180  florins,  or  15  pounds,  for  each  house- 
hold, as  revenue  drawn  from  the  land  and  the  occupa- 
tions that  it  furnished.  We  have  seen  that  in  this  village 
378  landowners  possessed  1400  Heildelberg  morgens:  the 
average  was  therefore,  to  each  nearly  4  morgens,  or  some- 
thing less  than  4  English  acres."*  Compared  with  such 
conditions  the  conditions  of  life  in  Pennsylvania  were 
very  promising.  The  immigrants  had  plenty  of  land 
from  which  they  could  easily  secure  a  livelihood.     If  they 

*T.  C.  Banfield,  "Industry  on  the  Rhine.-Agriculture."  p  208  f.  This  lit- 
tle book  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  I  have  found  in  giving-  definite  infor- 
mation as  to  agricultural  conditions  in  Germany.  It  is,  however,  a  descrip- 
tion of  conditions  at  more  than  a  century  later  than  the  time  of  which  we 
are  treating,  when  it  might  be  expected  that  the  heavy  emigration  of  the 
previous  sixty  years  had  made  labor  scarcer  and  land  more  abundant. 


RELIGIOUS  CONDITIONS  97 

could  not  buy  the  land,  they  could  rent  it.  If  they  had 
no  money  to  buy  tools  and  with  which  to  begin  farming, 
they  could  easily  find  work  with  others  who  had.*  The 
necessities  of  life  abounded  in  plenty  by  the  time  the 
Dunkers  arrived. 

It  must  be  remembered  also  that  in  Europe  these 
peasant  folk  were  not  used  to  much  money,  and  especially 
during  the  latter  part  of  their  history  there  they  had  not 
been  able  to  get  more  than  the  bare  necessities  of  life. 
For  example,  many  of  them  did  not  have  money  enough 
to  pay  their  passage  way  to  Pennsylvania,  f  Numbers  of 
them  got  over  through  the  assistance  of  either  the 
Mennonites  of  Holland  or  the  English  Quakers,  or  by  hav- 
ing themselves  and  their  children  sold  as  "Redemption- 
ers"  after  they  got  here  to  pay  the  ship  master  for 
bringing  them.  X 

More  important,  perhaps,  as  stimuli  of  immigration 
than  the  actual  economic  conditions  were  the  advertise- 
ments that  Penn  caused  to  be  scattered  broadcast  in 
Germany,  and  that  later  Queen  Anne,  and  King  George 
I.,  still  later,  sent  throughout  the  districts  of  the  Rhine 
countries  to  induce  the  persecuted  but  sturdy  Germans 
to  emigrate  to  America.** 

The  statement  of  George  I.  is  the  latest  of  these,  and 
is  interesting  as  showing  the  very  attractive  way  in  which 
the  advantages  of  America  were  presented.  It  was  prepar- 
ed for  the  special  purpose  of  advertising  the  lands  in  west- 

*Cf.  Pennypacker,  "His.  and  Biog.  Sketches,"  p  185,  188. 
tPennypacker,  "Historical  and  Biographical  Sketches"  p  190. 
tNass'  letter  quoted  in  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  122. 

**See  "Pennsylvania  Magazine  of  History  and  Biography",  4:331;  also 
Sachse,  "The  Fatherland",  inPenna.  German  Soc.  Proceedings.  7:162,175. 
Rupp  in  "History  of  Lancaster  County",  p  97,  98  quotes  Queen  Anne's 
proclamation.    Cf.     "Journal  of  the  House  of  Commons",  16:597. 


98  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

ern  Pennsylvania.  In  this  advertisement  he  contrasts 
the  conditions  in  western  Pennsylvania  with  the  con- 
ditions in  Europe  and  also  with  the  less  favorable  con- 
ditions of  eastern  Pennsylvania,  New  York,  Virginia  and 
the  Carolinas.  He  describes  the  western  part  of  Penn- 
sylvania as  a  land  that  has  a  good  climate,  pure  air 
and  that  offers  almost  every  advantage  desired  by 
immigrants.* 

To  this  glowing  description  was  attached  the  offer  that 
each  family  should  have  fifty  acres  of  land  in  fee  simple, 

*He  says  that  "it  is  well-watered,  having  streams,  brooks  and  springs, 
and  the  soil  has  the  reputation  of  being  better  than  any  that  can  be  found 
in  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia.  Walnut,  chestnut,  oak  and  mulberry  trees 
grow  naturally  in  great  profusion,  as  well  as  many  fruit-bearing  trees,  and 
the  wild  white  and  purple  grapes  in  the  woods  are  larger  and  better  than 
in  any  other  place  in  America.  The  soil  is  favorable  for  wheat,  barley, 
rye,  Indian  corn,  hemp,  flax,  and  also  silk,  besides  producing  many  other 
things  much  more  abundantly  than  in  Germany.  A  field  can  be  planted 
for  from  ten  to  twenty  successive  years  without  manure.  It  is  also  very 
suitable  for  such  fruit  as  apples,  pears,  cherries,  prunes,  quinces  and  es- 
pecially peaches,  which  grow  unusually  well  and  bear  fruit  in  three  years 
from  the  planting  of  the  stone.  All  garden  crops  do  very  well,  and  vine- 
yards dan  be  made,  since  the  wild  grapes  are  good  and  would  be  still  bet- 
ter if  they  were  dressed  and  pruned.  Many  horses,  cattle  and  sheep  can 
be  raised  and  kept,  since  an  excellent  grass  grows  exuberantly.  Numbers 
of  hogs  can  be  fattened  on  the  wild  fruits  in  the  bushes.  This  land  is  also 
full  of  cattle  -(rundvee),  called  buffaloes  and  elks,  none  of  which  are  seen 
in  Pennsylvania,  Virginia  or  Carolina.  Twenty  or  thirty  of  these  buffa- 
loes are  found  together.  There  are  also  many  bears,  which  hurt  no  one. 
They  feed  upon  leaves  and  wild  fruits,  on  which  they  get  very  fat,  and 
their  flesh  is  excellent.  Deer  exist  in  great  numbers,  besides  Indian  cocks 
and  hens  (turkeys),  which  weigh  from  twenty  to  thirty  pouads  each,  wild 
pigeons,  more  than  in  any  other  place  in  the  world,  partridges,  pheasants, 
wild  swans  and  geese,  all  kinds  of  ducks,  and  many  other  small  fowls  and 
animals;  so  that  if  the  settlers  can  only  supply  themselves  for  the  first  year 
with  bread,  some  cows  for  milk  and  butter,  and  vegetables,  such  as  pota- 
toes, peas,  beans,  etc.,  they  can  find  flesh  enough  to  eat  from  the  many  wild 
animals  and  birds,  and  can  live  better  than  the  richest  nobleman.  The  only 
difficulty  is  that  they  will  be  about  thirty  miles  from  the  sea;  but  this, 
by  good  management,  can  be  made  of  little  consequence'', — Pennypacker, 
"Historical  and  Biographical  Sketches",  p  186  f, 


RELIGIOUS  CONDITIONS  99 

and  for  the  first  ten  years  the  use  of  as  much  more  as 
they  might  want  without  charge,  save  the  yearly  rent  of 
two  shillings  for  each  hundred  acres.  Furthermore,  the 
settlers  were  not  to  be  accounted  foreigners,  but  allowed 
to  possess  the  land  as  much  as  though  they  had  been  born 
there.  They  were  to  have  the  same  privileges  of  relig- 
ious worship  as  the  Reformed  and  the  Lutherans. 

Such  a  land  and  such  an  offer  appealed  to  the  pover- 
ty-stricken, oppressed  and  persecuted  sectarians  of  Ger- 
many with  almost  irresistible  power.  When  to  such 
inducements  were  added  the  letters  of  friends  already  in 
eastern  Pennsylvania,  telling  of  its  opportunities,  and 
the  solicitations  of  land  companies,  already  described,  it 
is  small  wonder  that  in  the  years  between  1719  and  1737 
there  was  such  a  stream  of  emigrants  from  western  Eu- 
rope as  was  never  before  known. 

Life  was  not  all  ease  in  this  new  land,  but  it  was  easier 
than  in  Germany.  While  some  felt  that  the  hardships 
incident  to  the  emigration  and  settlement  in  Pennsylvan- 
ia were  too  great  for  the  benefits  to  be  reaped,  most  were 
convinced  that  by  diligence  a  good  living  could  be  made. 
Those  that  were  in  Pennsylvania  did  well  for  the  most 
part.  In  1733  John  Nass  could  say  of  the  Dunkers  "they 
are  all  well  off".*  Thus,  the  economic  conditions  in 
America  at  this  time  were  very  attractive. 

3.  Religious  Conditions  in  Pennsylvania. 
The  social  condition  that  gave  the  political  and  econom- 
ic forces  an  opportunity  to  make  their  appeals  to  these 
sturdy  Germans  was  the  religious  condition  of  Pennsyl- 
vania. The  butcheries  ordered  by  Louis  XIV  in  1674 
and  1688,  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  countries  bordering 
on  France,  especially  of  the  Palatinate,  had  created  hor- 
ror throughout  Europe.     The  oppression  of  the  Mennon- 

*Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",   p  120. 


100  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

ites  and  other  sectarians  in  Switzerland  had  not  only  re- 
sulted in  driving  most  of  these  people  from  the  persecut- 
ing countries  but  had  induced  many  minds  to  question 
the  expedience  of  the  persecutions.  The  story  of  the 
sufferings  of  these  Germans  stirred  the  Quakers  in  Eng- 
land, who  themselves  had  experienced  the  oppression  of 
the  state.  William  Penn  had  himself  known  what  it  is  to 
be  imprisoned  for  conscience'  sake.  His  own  experiences 
and  the  reports  of  the  persecutions  on  the  Continent 
settled  within  him  the  conviction  that  no  country  should 
persecute  its  subjects  for  a  religious  belief,  so  long  as 
that  belief  did  not  interfere  with  the  functions  of  the 
state.  Hence,  when  the  King  of  England  paid  a  debt 
that  he  owed  to  Penn's  father  with  a  large  grant  of  land 
in  America,  and  an  opportunity  was  thus  given  to  Penn 
to  found  a  colony  on  principles  according  to  his  own  con- 
victions, he  determined  that  there  should  be  no  oppres- 
sion within  its  borders  for  the  sake  of  religious  belief. 

As  early  as  1677  Penn  entertained  significant  ideas  of 
religious  liberty.  In  his  letter  to  the  Elector  Palatine 
in  that  year  he  set  forth  these  conceptions  in  the  clearest 
possible  manner.*    This  ideal  of  religious  liberty  Penn 

*"In  the  first  place,  I  do  with  all  sincere  and  Christian  respect  acknowl- 
edge and  commend  that  indulgence  thou  givest  to  all  people  professing 
religion,  dissenting  from  the  national  communion;  for  it  is  in  itself  a  most 
natural,  prudent  and  Christian  thing. 

'•Natural,  because  it  preserves  nature  from  being  made  a  sacrifice  to  the 
savage  fury  of  fallible,  yet  proud  opinions;  outlawing  men  of  parts,  arts, 
industry  and  honesty,  the  grand  requisites  of  human  society,  and  exposing 
them  and  their  families  to  utter  ruin  for  mere  nonconformity,  not  to 
religion,  but  to  modes  and  fashions  in  religion. 

"Christian,  since  the  contrary  expressly  contradicteth  both  the  precept 
and  example  of  Christ,  who  taught  us  'to  love  enemies,  not  abuse  our 
friends,  and  triumph  in  the  destruction  of  our  harmless  neighbor'.  He 
rebuked  his  disciples,  when  they  wished  for  fire  from  heaven  upon  dissen- 
ters, it  may  be  opposers;  certainly,  then  he  never  intended  that  they  should 
kindle  'fire  upon  earth  to  devour  men  for  conscience'.     And  if  Christ,  to 


RELIGIOUS  CONDITIONS  101 

had  had  incorporated  into  the  Constitutions  that  preced- 
ed the  Frame  of  Government.  In  these  he  says,  "Every 
person  that  doth,  or  shall  reside  therein,  shall  have  and 
enjoy  the  free  profession  of  his,  or  her  faith,  and  exer- 
cise of  worship  toward  God,  in  such  way  and  manner  as 
every  person  shall  in  conscience  believe  is  most  accept- 
able to  God."* 

In  the  laws  confirmatory  of  his  Frame  of  Government, 
passed  in  England,  Art.  35,  it  is  provided  as  follows: 

"That  all  persons  living  in  this  province,  who  confess 

whom  all  power  is  given,  and  his  holy  apostles  refused  to  employ  human 
force  and  artifice  so  much  as  to  conserve  themselves,  it  is  an  arrogancy  ev- 
ery way  indefensible  in  those  that  pretend  to  be  their  followers,  that  they 
assume  an  authority  to  supersede,  control  and  contradict  the  precepts  and 
examples  of  Christ  and  his  apostles;  whose  kingdom,  not  being  of  the 
nature  of  this  ambitious,  violent  world,  was  not  erected  or  maintained  by 
those  weapons  that  are  carnal,  but  spiritual  and  intellectual,  adequate  to 
the  nature  of  the  soul,  and  mighty  through  God  to  cast  down  the  strong- 
holds of  sin,  and  every  vain  imagination  exalted  in  man  above  the  lowly, 
meek  fear  of  God,  that  ought  to  have  the  preeminence  in  the  hearts  of  the 
sons  of  men. 

"Indulgence  is  prudent,  in  that  it  preserveth  concord:  no  kingdom 
divided  against  itself  can  stand.  It  encourageth  arts,  parts  and  industry, 
to  show  and  improve  themselves,  which  are  indeed  the  ornaments,  strength 
and  wealth  of  a  country;  it  encourageth  people  to  transplant  into  this 
land  of  liberty,  where  the  sweat  of  the  brow  in  not  made  the  forfeit  of  the 
conscience. 

"And,  lastly,  it  rendereth  the  prince  peculiarly  safe  and  great.  Safe, 
because  all  interests,  for  interest  sake,  are  bound  to  love  and  court  him: 
great,  in  that  he  is  not  governed  or  clogged  by  the  power  of  his  clergy, 
which  in  most  countries  is  not  only  a  coordinate  power,  a  kind  duumvirate- 
ship  in  government,  imperium  in  imperio,  at  least  an  eclipse  to  monarchy, 
but  a  superior  power,  and  rideth  the  prince  to  their  designs,  holding  the 
helm  of  the  government,  and  steering  not  by  the  laws  of  civil  freedom, 
but  by  certain  ecclesiastical  maxims  of  their  own,  to  the  maintenance  and 
enlargement  of  their  worldly  empire  in  their  church;  and  all  this  villany 
acted  under  the  sacred,  peaceable,  and  alluring  name  of  Christ,  his  min- 
istry and  church:  though  as  remote  from  their  nature,  as  the  wolf  from 
the  sheep,  and  the  Pope  from  Peter".— il  Select  Works",  2:436,  437. 

♦Hazard,   "Annals",  1:573;  Penn's  "Works"  1:122  f. 


102  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

and  acknowledge  the  one  Almighty  and  Eternal  God,  to 
be  the  Creator,  Upholder  and  Ruler  of  the  world,  and 
that  hold  themselves  obliged  in  conscience  to  live  peace- 
ably and  justly  in  civil  society,  shall  in  no  wise  be  moles- 
ted or  prejudiced  for  their  religious  persuasion  or 
practice  in  matters  of  faith  and  worship;  nor  shall  they 
be  compelled  at  any  time  to  frequent  or  maintain  any 
religious  worship,  place  or  ministry  whatsoever."* 

This  proclamation  of  liberal  ideas  in  Penn's  advertise- 
ments of  his  new  Colony,  doubtless,  had  much  to  do  in 
attracting  the  persecuted  sectarians  of  Holland,  Germany 
and  Switzerland,  t 

Penn  found  ready  hearers  among  the  Mennonites  and 
Anabaptists  of  Holland  and  Germany,  as  is  attested  by 
his  "Journal"  of  travels  in  those  countries.^:  That  his 
business  was  not  limited  to  the  preaching  of  Quakerism 
is  shown  by  the  fact  that  it  was  on  these  visits  that  he 
disposed  of  a  large  tract  of  land  in  Pennsylvania  to  some 
Cref elders,  and  that  his  visit  led  to  the  formation  of  the 
Frankfort  Land  Company.  The  chief  appeal  was,  doubt- 
less the  religious  liberty  that  could  be  enjoyed  there.** 

Futhermore,  Penn  went  about  the  business  of  getting 
colonists  from  Holland  and  Germany  in  a  systematic 
manner.  Benjamin  Furley,  a  Quaker  from  England,  had 
migrated  to  Holland,  and  married  there,  was  in  business 
there,  and  was  a  man  of  considerable  influence  in  that 
country.  He  had  made  it  his  concern  to  interest  himself 
in  the  Quakers  that  lived  in  Germany  and  the  adjacent 
states,  to  protect  them  in  their  interests,   and  to  help 

*Hazard,  "Annals",  1:573. 

tSee  list  of  such  advertisements  given  by  Diffenderfer  and  Sachse  in 
"Penna.  German  Soc.  Proceedings",  7:162,  175;  also  "Penna.  Magazine  of 
His.  andBiog.",  4:331. 

%  "Select  Works",  2:400  f. 

**Pennypacker,  "Historical  and  Biographical  Sketches",  p  11. 


RELIGIOUS  CONDITIONS  ws 

them  emigrate  to  the  Quaker  Colony.  This  man  was 
Penn's  agent  at  Rotterdam,  and  assisted  in  spreading 
abroad  the  advertisements  of  America.* 

When  the  Dunkers  had  come  to  the  point  in  their  his- 
tory where  they  were  ready  to  leave  Germany  and  Hol- 
land, all  this  was  ancient  history.  Since  1682  there  had 
been  Mennonites  in  Pennsylvania  from  Crefield.  Pasto- 
rius  and  others  had  been  sending  back  reports  to  their 
friends  in  Germany,  t  These  letters,  and  the  persistent 
advertising  that  both  Penn  and  the  English  Crown  had 
been  putting  into  circulation  in  Germany  about  Pennsyl- 
vania had  made  the  conditions  of  religious  freedom  to  be 
found  there  well  known  to  the  Dunkers.  Hence,  in  an 
age  when  religious  liberty  was  only  a  fitful  reality,  at  the 
best,  and  dependent  on  the  whim  of  the  ruler,  or  the  exi- 
gencies of  politics,  the  formulation  of  such  a  proposition 
as  Penn's  with  the  avowed  purpose  of  putting  it  into  exe- 
cution marked  a  distinct  advance  in  democratic  govern- 
ment, and  the  widespread  advertisement  of  the  plan  con- 
stituted a  strong  inducement  for  the  Dunkers  to  emigrate 
to  this  land  of  religious  freedom. 

4.    Influence  op  these  Conditions  on  the  Demotic 
Composition  in  Pennsylvania. 

These  conditions  determined  two  interesting  social 
facts  in  the  population  of  Pennsylvania  of  that  time,  viz: 
(1)  that  the  population  was  a  likeminded  one  on  most  mat- 
ters; (2)  that  it  was  a  heterogeneous  population  as  re- 
gards its  likemindedness  on  minor  religious  matters, 
which  at  that  time  assumed  so  large  a  place  in  men's 
thoughts. 

*See  Pennypacker,  "Settlement  of  Germantown, "  p  2,  and   "Furley"  in 
Index, 
tlbid,  p  51  f . 


104  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

From  the  nature  of  the  case  only  persons  socially  quite 
alike  responded  to  the  appeals  that  the  new  Colony  made. 
Those  that  responded  to  these  stimuli  were  alike  in 
race,  social  station,  economic  condition  and,  to  a  large 
degree,  in  faith. 

In  race  the  Dunkers,  Mennonites  and  Quakers  origin- 
ally belonged  to  the  same  ethnic  stock, -Teutonic.  Penn's 
mother  was  Dutch.  The  persecutions  of  the  Men- 
nonites and  Anabaptists  of  Holland  and  Germany  had 
driven  many  of  them  to  England  where  they  had  become 
Quakers.  That  Penn  in  all  his  sympathies  was  a  ^Teuton 
is  shown  by  the  heartiness  with  which  he  was  received 
by  the  Germans  and  the  Dutch  in  his  journeys  on  the 
Continent  in  1677- * 

The  political  and  economic  conditions  of  all  these  peo- 
ple that  came  to  Pennsylvania  were  much  alike.  All  had 
been  persecuted  by  their  respective  governments.! 
They  all  belonged  to  the  middle  and  lower  classes  of  so- 
ciety, which  had  neither  in  England  nor  on  the  Continent 
any  political  rights  that  the  governments  were  bound  to 
respect. 

Between  the  Dunkers  and  Mennonites  there  was  even 
a  greater  degree  of  social  likeness.  The  only  differences 
concerned  minor  points  of  religious  doctrine.  They 
were  from  the  same  parts  of  Germany.  Social  inter- 
course had  been  common  between  the  two  sects.  A  Dun- 
ker  preacher  preached  for  the  Mennonites  in  Germany.^ 
Common  sufferings  in  various  parts  of  Europe  had  driv- 
en Mennonites  and  Dunkers  together,  and  had  assisted 
the  social  assimilation  and  even  amalgamation  that  con- 

*See  his  Journal  in  "Select  Work,"  p  400  f. 
f'Chronicon  Ephratease,"  p  3,  22,  248. 
JIbid,  p  249. 


RELIGIOUS  CONDITIONS  105 

tiguity  was  promoting. *  Economically,  the  Dunkers  and 
Mennonites  belonged  to  the  same  classes.  For  the  most 
part  they  were  farmers  and  weavers. 

In  religious  beliefs  the  Dunkers,  Quakers  and  Mennon- 
ites were  very  much  akin.  Their  differences  were,  for 
the  most  part,  on  questions  of  emphasis.  All  believed  it 
the  duty  of  Christians  to  refuse  to  bear  arms,  to  take 
oaths,  and  to  be  separate  from  the  world  in  dress  and 
customs.  Dunkers  and  Mennonites  especially  held  be- 
liefs in  common,  the  Washing  of  Feet  as  a  rite  of  the 
church,  the  Salutation  of  the  kiss  between  brethren,  and 
the  necessity  of  the  Ban  in  church  discipline. 

Moreover,  these  three  sects  had  their  origin  in  the 
same  general  movement,  the  Dunkers  and  Quakers  being, 
in  part,  historical  variations  of  the  sectarian  movement 
of  which  Mennonism  was  an  earlier  manifestation. 

All  these  circumstances,  these  points  of  similarity  in 
customs,  in  racial  characteristics,  in  class  feeling,  their 
coming  from  the  same  localities,  their  mutual  acquaint- 
anceship, and  their  common  beliefs  conspired  to  make 
them  all  recognize  their  mental  and  practical  resem- 
blance. All  these  tended,  before  proximit}^  had  made 
them  conscious  of  their  differences,  to  cause  them  to 
recognize  their  agreements.  They  felt  that  they  were 
kindred  peoples,  f 

Hence,  at  the  distance  of  two  continents  everything 
made  the  Dunkers  feel  that  in  Pennsylvania,  of  all  places, 
they  would  find  a  people  most  like  themselves,  and  a  place 
of  refuge  and  opportunity. 

Although  the  Dunkers  did  not  see  them  before  they  ar- 

*See  Moeller,  "Church History,"  3:46o;  Goebel,  "Geschichte  d.  Christli- 
chen  Lebens,"  2:740. 

tGoebel,  "Geschichte  d.Christlichen  Lebens,"  2:740 f;  Cf.Mack,  "A  Plain 
View,  etc.,"  p  72  f;  Also  "Chronicon  Ephratease,"  p  249,  and  Pennypack- 
er,  "His.  and  Biog.  Sketches."  26  f,  181  n. 


106  THE  D  U&KERS  IN  AMERICA 

rived  in  America,  there  were  differences  in  the  popula- 
tion that  assembled  in  Pennsylvania.  All  the  parties 
concerned  became  increasingly  aware  of  these  differences 
in  the  years  that  followed  the  arrival  of  the  various  ele- 
ments of  the  population.  On  the  whole  the  population 
was  homogeneous.  But  it  was  just  heterogeneous  enough 
to  promote  discussion  and  a  mild  sort  of  conflict.  This 
unlikeness  was  due  to  the  minor  differences  in  religious 
beliefs,  in  church  organization,  in  social  mind  and  habits 
of  life  that  had  developed  from  inherited  tendencies,  and 
in  the  differing  environments  of  their  former  places  of 
abode.  Contiguity  exaggerated  these  small  differences. 
It  took  time  and  acquaintance  to  modify  these  differences 
and  to  make  the  people  more  homogeneous.  It  is  these 
minor  differences  that  come  to  expression  in  the  strife 
between  the  Dunkers  and  Mennonites  and  Quakers  in  the 
years  that  followed  the  settlement  of  the  Dunkers  in  Ger- 
mantown.  The  consciousness  of  these  social  differences 
conditioned  the  lack  of  social  cooperation  that  character- 
ized this  early  period  of  the  history  of  Pennsylvania.  It 
was  promoted  by  the  lack  of  easy  and  cheap  intercom- 
munication between  the  different  settlements.  It  pro- 
duced a  condition  of  social  isolation  that  helps  us  to  ex- 
plain much  in  the  early  history  of  the  Dunkers  in  America. 


CHAPTER  II. 


The  Early  History  of  The  Dunkers  in  America: 
Sociological  Interpretation. 

Such  conditions  existing  in  America  determined  the 
settlement  of  the  Dunkers  there  and  influenced  their  ear- 
ly history  in  Pennsylvania.  Conditions  in  Europe  deter- 
mined their  emigration;  the  situation  in  America,  having 
come  to  their  knowledge,  determined  that  Pennsylvania 
should  be  the  scene  of  the  beginning  of  the  second  period 
in  their  development. 

1.    Origin  op  the  Dunker  Church  in  America. 

The  Dunker  church  in  America  grew  out  of  the  Crefeld 
congregation  in  Prussia.  In  1719  in  response  to  the  mo- 
tives already  noticed,  Becker's  company  of  about  twenty 
persons  emigrated  to  Philadelphia,  and  settled  near  Ger- 
mantown.  This  was  the  first  company  of  Dunkers  to 
land  on  American  soil.  They  found  among  the  German 
Mennonites,  already  here,  many  persons  known  in  the  old 
home. 

The  most  striking  fact  in  the  history  of  the  Dunkers 
during  the  first  two  years  after  the  arrival  of  this  first 
party,  is  that  there  was  no  organization  of  the  church. 
They  were  not  a  church,  simply  members  of  the  Crefeld 
congregation  scattered  about  the  various  settlements 
around  Germantown  as  a  centre.  Apparently,  their  mi- 
gration to  America  had  been  induced  largely  by  economic 
motives,  for  the  members  of  the  company  were  not 
agreed  concerning  the  troubles  that  had  taken  place  at 
Crefeld,  some  taking  the  side  of  Hoecker  and  others 
that  of  Libe.  Hence,  they  were  not  a  social  unit.  There 
was  something  of  the  same  consciousness  of  unlikeness 
among  them  as  caused  the  rupture  at  Crefeld.  Conse- 
quently, any  sort  of  social  organization  was  impossible. 


108  THE  D  TINKERS  IN  AMERICA 

There  was  a  homogeneity  among  them,  but  it  was  not 
pronounced  enough  at  first  to  allow  them  to  cooperate  in 
an  organization. 

Three  circumstances,  separation  from  each  other,  the 
passage  of  time,  and  contact  with  social  elements  in  the 
population  of  the  country  unlike  themselves,  put  an  end 
to  this  condition  of  affairs.  The  first  put  an  end 
to  the  bickering  that  engenders  strife.  As  Professor 
Ross  has  noted,  the  social  process  often  promotes  con 
sciousness  of  unlikeness  by  bringing  slight  differences 
to  expression  by  contact.  X  The  isolation  of  the  Dunkers 
in  their  new  homes  worked  in  the  opposite  direction.  It 
alleviated  the  acute  condition  of  social  strife  by  doing 
away  with  the  favoring  circumstances.  The  second,  the 
passage  of  time,  tended  to  bring  about  the  same  result. 
This  allowed  these  discordant  elements  opportunity  to 
forget  their  unlikeness.  They  could  not  see  each  other 
often,  and  when  they  did,  the  space  of  time  that  inter- 
vened caused  them  to  recognize  and  enjoy  their  likenesses 
rather  than  to  dwell  upon  their  points  of  difference.  The 
third,  contact  with  members  of  other  sects,  emphasized 
the  effect  of  the  second.  By  contact  with  the  Quakers, 
Mennonites,  the  Lutherans  and  the  Reformed  in  their 
vicinity  the  Dunkers  became  conscious  of  differences  be- 
tween themselves  and  these  other  social  elements.  Prox- 
imity emphasized  unlikeness  that  distance  hid  from  view. 
But  by  becoming  aware  of  the  fact  that  they  were  unlike 
the  other  social  elements,  the  Dunkers  became  conscious 
of  a  social  likeness  among  themselves.  This  contact 
with  others,  thus,  developed  a  consciousness  of  kind. 
The  result  was  that  after  about  two  years  the  conscious- 
ness of  likeness  was  so  far  developed  among  them  that  it 
demanded  expression. 

X "Foundations  of  Sociology,"  p  96. 


EARL  T  HIS  TOR  T  109 

Whil^  these  stimuli  of  their  environment  were  work- 
ing the  same  results  in  all  the  Dunkers,  Becker  was  re- 
sponding to  them  most  heartily  and  most  rapidly.  There- 
fore, it  was  Becker  that  first  of  all  came  to  the  conclu- 
sion that  the  disorganized  condition  of  the  Dunkers  must 
be  remedied,  and  undertook  the  first  " visitation",  in  the 
interests  of  harmony  and  unity  among  the  scattered 
Dunkers.  This  was  in  1722,  when  with  two  companions, 
he  undertook  a  journey,  or  "visitation,"  to  the  scattered 
members  about  Germantown,  in  order  to  bring  about 
some  sort  of  association.*  These  men  visited  the  mem- 
bers that  lived  in  the  region  known  as  Skippack,  Falck- 
ner's  Swamp,  and  Oley.  This  "visitation"  had  much  to 
do  with  the  settlement  of  differences,  with  allaying  the 
unpleasant  feelings,  and  in  promoting  that  social  like- 
mindedness  that  resulted  in  the  revival  of  religion,  among 
these  Dunkers  and  in  the  beginning  oi  their  social  de- 
velopment in  America. 

The  visit  gave  opportunity  to  all  the  scattered  Dunkers 
to  express  their  recognition  of  likeness,  which  had  been 
growing  for  two  years.  Moreover,  Becker  had  become 
possessed  of  an  ideal,  viz.,  the  organization  of  all  these 
likeminded  people  into  a  society  in  which  the  desire  for 
sympathy  and  brotherly  affection  could  be  realized.  To 
the  other  Dunkers,  this  ideal  became  a  stimulus  to  which 
they  responded  favorably.  That  organization  made  pos- 
sible further  progress. 

In  the  autumn  of  that  year,  the  Dunkers,  of  whom 
Becker  continued  to  be  the  leading  spirit  for  some  time, 
began  to  hold  meetings  in  Germantown,  at  the  homes  of 
Becker  and  Gomorry.  These  meetings  continued,  until 
the  winter  prohibited  the  attendance  of  those  that  lived 
any  distance  from  Germantown.     During  the  winter  of 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense,"  p  21  f. 


110  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

1723  the  meetings  were  held  at  weekly  intervals.  In  the 
autumn  of  1723  a  rumor  got  abroad  among  the  Germans 
on  the  Skippack  that  Christian  Li  be,  the  preacher  that 
had  occasioned  the  trouble  at  Crefeld,  and  who  was  the 
minister  in  charge  there,  had  arrived  in  Philadelphia 
from  Germany.  In  order  to  meet  him  a  number  of  peo- 
ple from  the  Schuylkill  country  went  to  Philadelphia. 
The  report  turned  out  to  be  false,  but  on  the  way  home 
these  people  went  through  German  town,  and  were  invited 
by  the  Germantown  Dunkers  to  remain  over  Sunday  with 
them  and  attend  the  meeting.  The  country  people  did 
so,  and  were  so  much  impressed  by  what  they  saw  and 
heard,  that  soon  afterwards  they  made  a  second  visit  to 
Germantown.  The  Dunkers,  in  turn,  visited  them.  The 
result  was  that  these  people  applied  to  be  received  into 
membership  at  Germantown. 

This  application  raised  an  interesting  question.  Hith- 
erto the  members  at  Germantown  had  not  considered 
themselves  a  church ;  they  were  merely  members  of  the 
Crefeld  church.  However,  after  due  deliberation,  the 
members  at  Germantown  decided  to  grant  the  request  of 
these  friends  from  the  Skippack  to  be  taken  into  the 
church.  The  candidates  chose  Peter  Becker  to  baptize 
them.  This  first  baptism  by  the  Dunkers  in  America  oc- 
curred in  the  Wissahickon  Creek  near  Germantown  on 
Christmas  day,  1723.* 

That  night  was  held  the  first  Love  Feast,  as  the  service 
in  connection  with  the  Eucharist  was  called,  ever  held  by 
the  Dunkers  in  America,  at  the  house  of  John  Gomorry. 
At  this  Love  Feast  Peter  Becker  officiated. 

Thus,  naturally  there  grew  up  an  embryo-organization. 

*The  names  of  these  people,  the  first  members  reeeived  into  the  church 
in  America,  are  Martin  Urner  and  his  wife  (Haussch wester),  Henry 
Landis  and  his  wife,  Frederick  Lang,  and  Jan  Mayle. — "Chronicon  Ephra- 
tense,"  p  23. 


EARLY  HISTORY  Ul 

There  was  no  formal  action  taken  with  the  definite  pur- 
pose of  forming  an  organized  congregation,  but  when 
this  need  arose,  this  body  of  consciously  likeminded 
people  assumed  the  functions  of  an  organization.  They 
accepted  certain  people  as  members,  they  allowed  one  of 
their  number  to  baptize  the  candidates  and  they  held  Love 
Feasts.  Here,  in  contrast  with  the  origin  in  Europe,  we 
see  the  spontaneous  rise  of  an  organization  to  meet  the  re- 
quest of  applicants  for  membership.  This  was  the  be- 
ginning of  Dunker  organization  in  America.  From  that 
beginning  step  by  step  has  developed  the  Dunker  church 
in  America,  with  her  Annual  Meeting,  her  district  meet- 
ings, her  Sunday  school  and  missionary  meetings,  and 
her  various  organizations  local  to  each  congregation.  The 
first  steps  towards  it  began  with  Peter  Becker's  efforts 
to  visit,  and  to  unite,  on  the  basis  of  his  ideal,  the  scattered 
members  about  Germantown.  Another  step  in  the  same 
direction  was  taken  when  unorganized  meetings  were  held 
at  various  places,  at  which  the  things  on  which  they  were 
agreed  were  emphasized,  and  their  disagreements  forgot- 
ten in  the  zeal  that  was  begotten  of  their  contact  with  un- 
like elements  in  the  population  of  that  region.  But  the 
definite  step  was  now  first  taken.  Now  there  was  a  Dunker 
church  in  America.  Hitherto,  there  had  been  but  scat- 
tered members. 

These  unusual  events  among  the  Dunkers  excited  the 
curiosity  of  the  people  about  the  neighborhood,  and  many 
of  those  attracted  to  the  meetings  by  curiosity  later  be- 
came members.  All  the  next  summer  meetings  were 
kept  up,  until  the  storms  and  cold  of  winter  again  put  a 
stop  to  them.  In  the  spring  of  1725  meetings  were  begun 
again,  with  the  result  "that  the  whole  region  roundabout 
was  moved  thereby".*    The  movement  assumed  the  pro- 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense, "  p  23. 


112  B  UNEERS  IN  AMERICA 

portions  of  a  revival.  It  was  a  movement  among  the  young 
people  especially.  The  accessions  to  the  church,  as  well  as 
the  strange  manners  and  customs  of  the  Dunkers,  drew 
the  attention  of  the  people  round  about,  so  that  the  Dunk- 
ers' limited  accommodations  were  overcrowded.  The 
following  summer  also  the  meetings  were  continued  and 
Love  Feasts  were  held  frequently.  These  frequent  meet- 
ings, characterized  by  a  ready  acceptance  of  Becker's 
ideal,  cultivated  mental  and  moral  likeness,  which  was 
promoted,  on  the  other  hand,  by  the  opposition  their  ac- 
tivity excited.  The  brethren  at  Germantown  sent  letters 
to  their  friends  in  Germany,  telling  them  of  the  "a wak- 
ening" that  had  occurred,  and  of  the  good  results.  This 
correspondence,  doubtless,  had  something  to  do  with 
Mack's  coming  hither  in  1729. 

2.    Conrad  Beissel  and  His  Influence  on  the  De- 
velopment OF  THE  DtJNKER  CHURCH. 

A.  Early  Period:    To  his  Separation  from  the  Bunkers. 

In  the  autumn  of  1720  a  man  sailed  from  Europe,  whose 
coming  hither  was  fraught  with  important  consequences, 
in  more  ways  than  one,  for  the  Danker  church  in  America. 
In  that  year  Conrad  Beissel,  with  at  least  four  com- 
panions, arrived  at  Boston. 

He  was  born  after  his  father's  death  and  all  his  early 
years  were  years  of  hardship.  His  mother  died  when  he 
was  .eight  years  old,  and  ufrom  that  time  on  he  led  a  sorry 
life,  after  the  manner  of  the  country,  until  he  was  old 
enough  to  learn  a  trade".*  Even  after  he  had  learned  the 
baker's  trade  he  still  was  a  homeless,  dissipated,  godless 
man.  This  hard  life  made  a  very  deep  impression  upon  his 
sensitive  nature.     While  a  citizen  of  the  Palatinate,  after 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  3. 


EARLY  HISTORY  113 

a  dissipated  life,  he  was  "a wakened",  and  became  a  Piet- 
ist. **  He  knew  something  of  the  Dunkers  of  Schwarzenau, 
but  they  were  too  sectarian  to  suit  him.  Besides  the 
Dunkers,  there  was  another  party  very  much  like  them 
in  that  region.  This  group  was  what  was  known  as  the 
Inspirationists.f  With  them  he  worshipped  for  a  time 
after  his  "awakening".  But  coming  under  suspicion 
among  them  he  finally  left  their  party.  During  this 
period  he  was  under  the  influence  of  such  mystical  writers 
as  Boehme. 

After  leading  a  wandering  life  for  some  time  he  decided 
on  this  journey  to  America.  On  his  arrival  at  Boston,  he 
made  his  way  to  German  town.  Here  he  was  kindly  re- 
ceived by  some  of  the  Dunkers.  y  As  there  was  no  oppor- 
tunity for  a  baker  to  make  a  living  in  Pennsylvania,  he 
apprenticed  himself  to  Peter  Becker  to  learn  the  weaver's 
trade. 

While  living  with  Becker,  he  learned  of  the  disorgan- 
ized and  divided  condition  of  the  Germantown  Dunkers. 
They  were  not  only  scattered  throughout  the  settlements, 
but  were  also  divided  in  sentiment  concerning  the  unfor- 
tunate division  at  Cref eld,  Germany.  %  Their  zeal  for  the 
cause  had  been  dissipated  by  their  quarrels.  The  "Chron- 
icon  Ephratense"  is  responsible  for  the  statement  that  it 
was  at  Beissel's  suggestion  that  the  Dunkers  decided  to 
have  meetings  in  order  to  bring  about  a  settlement  of  the 
difficulties. 

In  1721,  after  he  had  completed  his  year  of  apprentice- 
ship with  Becker,  Beissel,  in  company  with  Stuntz,  one 
of  his  fellow-travellers  from  Europe,  went  into  that  part 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  5. 

f'Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  1.     Doubtless,  these  were  the  same  as  those 
spoken  of  by  Goebel  as  "Enthusiasts". 
J"Chronicon  Ephratense,"  p  15. 


114  THE  DUNKEBS  IN  AMERICA 

of  the  wilderness  known  as  the  Conestoga  country,  now 
Lancaster  county,  and  there  they  set  up  their  solitary 
abode  in  order  to  realize  Beissel' s  ideal  of  a  hermitical 
life,  which  ideal  he  owed  to  the  influence  of  such  mystics 
as  Boehme,  Arnold,  and  Petersen. 

While  living  here  Beissel  came  into  relations  with  sev- 
eral sects  that  had  great  influence  on  his  beliefs.  Thus, 
there  was  a  settlement  of  English  Sabbatarians  at  Nant- 
mill,  not  far  away  from  his  cabin,  and  he  soon  adopted 
their  beliefs  on  the  question  of  the  Sabbath.* 

Furthermore,  his  previous  tendency  to  Jewish  legalism 
was  strengthened  by  intercourse  with  a  community  of 
Jews  that  had  settled  in  the  same  valley.  With  BeissePs 
legalistic  conception  of  the  Gospel,  and  his  austerity  of 
character,  he  was  prepared  to  respond  favorably  to  such 
influences,  in  the  absence  of  any  sharp  antagonism  to 
those  that  held  them.  Imitation  of  those  people  confirm- 
ed his  position  on  the  Sabbath  and  determined  his  views 
on  the  eating  of  certain  meats  forbidden  by  the  Mosaic 
legislation^ 

Moreover,  during  these  first  two  years  of  residence  in 
the  wilderness,  Beissel  in  company  with  Isaac  van  Be- 
bern  had  made  a  journey  to  the  Labadist  colony  in  Mary- 
land. His  views  on  celibacy  were  like  theirs.  He  agreed 
with  them  already  in  his  leanings  towards  ascetic  prac- 
tices, and  their  example  found  in  Beissel  a  ready  imitator, 
not  only  of  their  asceticism,  but  also  of  their  communism. 
These  three  influences  are  significant  in  connection  with 
Beissel's  views  worked  out  later  in  his  Dunker  congrega- 
tion at  Conestoga  and  finally  and  completely  in  his  com- 
munity at  Ephrata. 

*Sachse,  ' 'German  Sectarians",  1:28,  72;  2:164;  "Chronicon  Ephratense", 
p  44;  Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers",  p  136. 

tSaehse,  "German  Sectarians",  1:116. 


EARL  Y  HIS  TOR  T  115 

The  wilderness  environment  itself  was  a  favorable  en- 
vironment for  the  development  of  asceticism,  since  it 
heightened  rather  than  subdued  the  ascetic  tendencies  of 
Beissel.  Furthermore,  it  was  only  in  such  surroundings 
that  ascetic  ideals  could  thrive.  Therefore,  the  environ- 
ment conditioned  the  asceticism  of  Beissel. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  composition  of  the  population, 
sparse  though  it  was,  was  homogeneous  on  broad  lines, 
since,  on  the  whole,  the  German  settlers  here  were  from 
the  same  social  class  in  Europe  and  had  had  very  similar 
experiences.  They  had  come  largely  from  the  Rhine 
countries  of  Germany  and  Switzerland.  They  were  men 
and  women  whom  the  horrors  of  war,  with  its  consequen- 
ces, had  robbed  of  gladness,  almost  of  happiness;  in 
whom  had  been  engendered,  not  only  a  hatred  of  war,  but 
also  of  material  prosperity  and  of  civil  power.*  It  should 
not  suprise  us,  therefore,  if  Beissel  found  these  people 
easily   brought  to  much  the  same  mind  as  himself  on 

*Here  is  a  German  poem  by  Yillis  Cassel,  written  about  1665,  which 
describes  the  condition  of  the  Rhine  country  from  which  many  of  these 
people  came: 

Denn  es  ist  bekannt  und  offenbar, 

Was  Jammer,  Elend,  und  Gefahr 
Gewesen  ist  umher  im  Land 

Mit  Rauben,  Pluendern,  Mord  und  Brand. 
Manch  Mensch  gebracht  im  Angst  und  Noth 

Geschaendeliert  auch  bis  zum  Tod. 
Zerschlagen  verhauen  manch  schoenes  Haus, 

Vielen  Leuten  die  Kleider  gezogen  aus; 
Getreed  und  Vieh  hinweggefuehrt, 

Viel  Jammer  und  Klaghatman  gehoert".— Pennypacker, 
"Historical  and  Biographical  Sketches",  p  195. 

And  Max  Goebel,  writing  of  Wittgenstein,  the  region  whence  some  of 
them  came,  says,  "Das  Land  ist  rauh,  steinigt  und  unfruchtbar,  sodassnur 
in  den  Diederen  Gegenden  der  Raggen  gedeiht  und  selbst  der  Hafer  und 
die  Kartoffel  an  vielen  Orten  nur  muehsam  gewonnen  wird;  Obst  waechst 
nur  sparam  in  den  waermeren  Thaelern  und  in  sehr  geschuetzen  Lagen; 
etc.",— "Geschichted.  Christlichen  Lebens",  2:739. 


U6  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

religious  matters,  when  they  had  been  subjected  to  a 
similarly  harsh  environment  in  Europe  and  now  to  the 
same  wilderness  environment  in  Pennsylvania.  That  he 
did  find  it  easy  to  bring  a  considerable  number  to  his  way 
of  thinking  is  indicated  by  the  fact  that  he  had  gathered 
about  him  an  incipient  congregation  of  people  on  the 
broad  basis  of  combatting  the  irreligious  tendencies  of 
wilderness  life.  It  was  in  this  population  that  Beissel 
had  promoted  the  awakening  of  which  the  Dunkers  heard 
before  they  visited  the  district  in  1724.  In  his  hut  on 
the  banks  of  Mill  Creek  the  Dunkers  found  him  in  that 
year  living  as  a  "solitary"  with  Michael  Wohlfahrt, 
when  they  made  their  second  "visitation",  referred  to 
below,  to  the  people  outside  of  Germantown. 

So  successful  had  the  Germantown  Dunkers  been  in 
creating  an  effective  likemindedness  in  the  people  of 
Germantown  who  potentially  resembled  themselves,  that 
soon  most  of  the  former  had  joined  them.  But  with  the 
consequent  increase  of  opposition  on  the  part  of  the 
socially  unlike  elements  of  the  population,  the  zeal  of  the 
Dunkers  grew.  In  the  expression  of  their  zeal  they 
obeyed  the  law  of  least  effort  and  sought  those  outside 
of  Germantown  that  they  believed  were  like  themselves. 
Therefore,  the  Germantown  Dunkers  now  resolved  to 
make  a  second  "visitation".  Accordingly,  on  Oct.,  23, 
1724,  they  started.  They  visited  Skippack,  Falckner's 
Swamp,  Oley  and  the  new  members  in  the  Schuylkill 
country.  From  there  they  went  on  to  the  Conestoga 
country,  where  an  "awakening"  had  occurred  under  the 
influence  of  Beissel,  about  the  same  time  as  that  at 
Germantown,  and  where  there  were  living  some  Menno- 
nites,  and  Separatists.*  On  November  12th  they  held  a 
meeting  at  the  home  of  Henry    Hoehn.     Beissel    was 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  24. 


EARLY  HISTORY  U7 

present.  Five  were  baptized  as  a  result  of  the  meeting 
that  day,  but,  although  he  had  contemplated  such  action, 
Beissel  was  not  among  them,  because  he  felt  that  no  one 
of  these  Dunkers  was  of  greater  ability  than  himself. 
Finally,  however,  he  became  convinced,  that  since  Christ 
had  allowed  himself  to  be  baptized  by  John  the  Baptist, 
he  should  humble  himself  and  be  baptized.  Accordingly 
a  short  time  afterwards  he  was  baptized  by  Peter  Becker. 
After  the  baptism  a  Love  Feast  was  held  at  Henry 
Hoehn's.  Three  more  were  baptized  within  the  week.* 
The  new  members  in  the  Conestoga  country  were  organ- 
ized into  a  church.  As  the  Dunkers  had  not  yet  developed 
a  method  of  caring  for  new  congregations,  when  Becker 
and  his  party  left  for  Germantown,  they  commended  the 
new  congregation  to  the  grace  of  God,  and  left  them  to 
their  own  devices.  The  members  of  the  congregation 
proceeded  by  choosing  Beissel  as  their  "overseer" 
(Vorsteher). 

It  was  a  fateful  choice,  for,  while  the  Germantown 
Dunkers  were  at  Conestoga,  they  learned  of  the  peculiar 
beliefs  of  Beissel  mentioned  above.  That  made  them 
suspicious  of  his  "orthodoxy".  Their  fears  proved  well 
founded,  for  while  this  congregation  remained  in  com- 
munion with  the  Germantown  congregation  for  sometime, 
Beissel  at  once  began  to  preach  the  importance  of  keep- 
ing the  Jewish  Sabbath,  the  superiority  of  the  state  of 
celibacy,  and  the  shunning  of  certain  meats  for  food.t 
He  also  showed  that  he  was  possessed  of  extraordinary 
powers,  which  today  we  should  probably  term  hypnotic.^ 

*However,  the  revival  suddenly  stopped,  because  of  the  rise  of  dissension 
over  the  difficulties  that  had  risen  at  Cref  eld. —Ibid,  p  24,  26. 

t"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  27;  Cf.  Sachse,  "German  Sectarians",  1:116. 

Jlbid,  p  35,  36.  Doubtless,  it  was  this  strange  power  that  had  occasioned 
the  rumors  in  the  community  that  he  was  a  sorcerer  and  a  seducer  of 
women.  In  a  superstitious  age  such  rumors  were  accepted  at  face  value 
and  helped  to  raise  suspicions  against  him. 


118  THE  DUIKERS  IN  AMERICA 

It  is  certain  that  during  all  his  life  he  had  a  strange  pow- 
er over  women,  as  well  as  over  many  men.*  The  suspicions 
of  the  Dunkers  are  the  first  indications  of  a  consciousness 
of  social  unlikeness  between  Beissel  and  the  Dunkers, 
which  consciousness  of  kind  afterwards  produced  very- 
important  results. 

However,  Beissel  was  not  disturbed  in  his  sway  over 
the  congregation  for  some  time.  His  activity,  however, 
was  not  confined  to  this  congregation  of  the  Dunkers. 
Until  he  finally  broke  with  them  in  1728,  Beissel  held 
meetings  among  the  Dunkers  in  various  places,  as  a  re- 
sult of  which  many  were  added  to  the  Dunker  church. 
For  example,  in  1728  he  held  meetings  at  Falckner's 
Swamp,  and  sixteen  members  were  added,  and  a  con- 
gregation organized.  He  also  held  revival  meetings 
among  the  members  on  the  Schuylkill  at  which  many 
were  added  to  the  church.  Moreover,  his  activity  was 
not  confined  to  the  Dunkers,  but  included  all  the  Ger- 
mans in  the  vicinity. 

For  three  years  the  relations  between  Beissel  and  the 
Germantown  Dunkers  were  seemingly  friendly.  But  the 
suspicions  that  had  been  aroused  in  the  minds  of  the  lat- 
ter on  the  occasion  of  their  visit  to  the  Cones  toga  congre- 
gation in  1724,  when  Beissel  was  baptized,  were  never  al- 
layed, and  the  lack  of  frequent  communication  prevented 
social  assimilation.  The  absence  of  mutual  confidence 
finally  led  to  an  open  rupture.  It  came  about  in  the  fol- 
lowing manner :  Jacob  Stuntz  had  married  a  kinswoman. 
Beissel  condemned  the  marriage  as  improper  and  had 
Stuntz  and  his  wife  put  under  the  ban  of  the  Conestoga 
congregation.  In  1727  some  of  the  Dunkers  of  German- 
town  made  another  "visitation"  to  this  congregation.  On 
the  way  Henry  Traut  and  Stephen  Koch  stopped  to  visit 

*See,  Sachse,  ''German  Sectarians",  2:89,  9l,  118. 


EARL  Y  HIS  TOR  T  119 

Stuntz  and  his  wife.  After  hearing  from  them  the  story 
of  the  trouble,  they  proceeded  to  remove  the  ban  from 
them  without  waiting  for  action  by  the  congregation. 
This  was  irregular,  and,  at  a  meeting  held  at  Henry 
Hoehn's,  Beissel  had  them  disciplined  for  removing  the 
ban  on  their  own  responsibility.  Naturally  the  German- 
town  Dunkers  sided  with  Traut  and  Koch.  This  occa- 
sioned hard  feelings  between  Beissel  and  the  visitors.* 

The  next  year  after  the  organization,  during  Beissel' s 
meetings,  of  the  congregation  at  Falckner's  Swamp,  the 
Germantown  Dunkers  endeavored  to  prejudice  the  new 
congregation  against  Beissel.  This  resulted  in  further 
bitter  feeling  and  an  incipient  division  between  the  "Beis- 
selainers"  and  the  Dunkers  of  Germantown. 

Moreover,  a  division  occurred  in  the  congregation  at 
Conestoga,  fostered,  as  Beissel' s  party  thought,  by  the 
Dunkers  of  Germantown.  Michael  Wohlfahrt  went  to 
Germantown  and  rebuked  the  congregation,  and  Peter 
Becker  in  particular.  Thus,  was  a  consciousness  of  dif- 
ference developed. 

Further,  Beissel  laid  emphasis  on  celibacy,  which  the 
European  experiences  of  the  Germantown  Dunkers,  as  a 
church,  made  them  unwilling  to  endorse.  All  these 
events  made  each  side  recognize  the  fact  that  it  was 
unlike  the  other.  With  these  various  elements  still  un- 
assimilated  by  time  and  custom,  and  with  the  recognition 
of  the  unlikeness  by  each  side  to  Ifehe  controversy,  the 
proper  conditions  were  present  for  a  rupture.  It  came 
about,  formally,  in  December,  1728,  when  Beissel  had 
himself  and  all  his  followers  baptised  over  again  and  thus 
"gave  the  Germantown  Baptists  back  their  baptism",  as 
he  said.    This  he  did,  because  the  latter  were  saying  that 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  36,  38. 


120  THE  B  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

he  had  received  his  baptism  from  them,  and  therefore  all 
he  was  he  owed  to  them.* 

In  the  following  year,  Alexander  Mack  and  his  large 
company  of  followers  arrived  at  Germantown  from  West- 
er vain,  West  Friesland.  In  this  company  were  126  per- 
sons,— 59  families, — some  of  whom  settled  at  German- 
town,  t 

What  was  the  immediate  cause  of  the  emigration  of  this 
company  of  Dunkers  under  the  leadership  of  Mack  from 
Friesland  to  Pennsylvania  it  is  impossible  to  say  with 
certainty.  In  general,  the  causes  were  much  the  same  as 
moved  the  other  sectarians  to  leave  Europe  at  that  time 
for  the  Colony  of  the  Quakers.^ 

The  Dunkers  in  Friesland  had  already  broken  loose 
from  their  native  country,  and,  after  the  years  of  wandering 
they  had  experienced,  the  ties  that  bound  them  to  Europe 
were  not  strong.  The  congregations  in  Europe  were 
scattered.  Political  and  religious  liberty  was  not  assured 
them  any  length  of  time.  The  economic  opportunities 
of  the  New  World,  according  to  all  reports  that  reached 
them,  were  much  superior  to  theirs  in  Friesland.  In 
fact,  there  was  every  reason  for  their  leaving  Europe  and 
going  to  Pennsylvania. 

The  addition  of  these  new  members  from  the  other  side 
of  the  sea  made  the  Germantown  church  a  large  one,  and 
gave  a  great  impetus  to  the  work  there.  It  not  only  ad- 
ded numbers,    but  it  created   a  congregation  in  which 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p.  48. 

fit  is  not  certain,  however,  that  all  these  were  Dunkers.  It  is  probable 
that  most  of  them  were,  however,  as  Dr.  Brumbaugh  has  compiled  a  list 
of  116  members  that  came  with  Mack  to  America.— "Pennsylvania  Ar- 
chives", Second  Series,  17:18;  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  16;  Brumbaugh, 
"History  of  the  Brethren",  p  54  f. 

JNass's  letter  translated  in  Brumbaugh's  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p 
108  f  ;  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  24. 


EARL  T  HIS  TOR  Y  121 

the  recently  arrived  Dunkers  were  in  such  a  majority 
that  it  was  virtually  a  new  congregation.  The  new  mem- 
bers before  arriving  at  Germantown  had  become  assimi- 
lated into  a  social  unit  that  gave  great  stability  to  the 
Germantown  congregation.  Furthermore,  this  immigra- 
tion brought  to  the  Germantown  church  Alexander  Mack, 
a  man  of  the  greatest  influence  among  both  the  "Beissel- 
ainers"  and  the  Dunkers.  The  weight  of  his  influence 
enabled  him  to  use  his  wise  counsel  in  the  settling  of  any 
differences,  and  in  directing  the  work  of  the  church, 
while  he  lived. 

Naturally,  when  he  arrived,  the  first  thing  he  heard  of 
was  the  recent  defection  of  the  "Beisselainers".  But  he 
heard  the  story  only  from  the  Germantown  side.  In  1730 
he,  with  some  of  the  Germantown  members,  made  a  jour- 
ney to  Conestoga  for  the  pupose  of  healing  the  breach 
between  the  two  factions.  But  Biessel  was  in  no  mood 
for  compromise,  and  the  negotiations  came  to  naught. 
Some  time  afterwards  Beissel  wanted  to  drop  matters  and 
have  a  reconciliation,  but  the  Dunkers  would  not  consent 
without  a  previous  investigation.  To  this  Beissel  would 
not  consent.    Thus,  the  division  became  permanent.* 

As  we  look  at  the  matter  from  this  distance  of  time,  it 
is  apparent  that  there  was  error  on  both  sides.  What 
seem  to  us  trivialities,  were  exaggerated  into  causes  of 
offence  by  the  imperfectly  united  parties  to  the  contro- 
versy. 

The  underlying  cause  of  the  division  was  the  conscious- 
ness of  unlikeness  that  existed  in  two  parties.  Beissel 
had  more  of  the  mystical  element  in  him  than  the  German- 
town  Baptists  could  look  upon  with  favor.  He  was  cer- 
tainly a  man  of  extraordinary  gifts,  but  a  man  also  of 
great  self-esteem,  and  he  was  under  the  influence  of  the 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  31,32. 


m  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

mystics  whom  he  had  met  in  Germany,  rather  than  of  the 
men  that  controlled  the  Dunkers.  As  the  authors  of  the 
uChronicon  Ephratense"  remark,  "those  who  know  how 
the  affair  stood  between  the  two  congregations,  know 
also  that  a  close  union  between  them  was  impossible;  for 
they  were  born  of  diverse  causes".  That  is  the  real 
explanation  of  the  beginning  of  the  trouble  and  of  the 
final  rupture.  "They  were  born  of  diverse  causes", — not 
only  in  the  sense  intended  by  the  writers,  but  of  diverse 
sociological  causes.  The  leaders  and  the  congregation 
had  developed  under  different  environments.  Beissel 
had  been  subjected  to  a  more  mystical  environment  in 
Europe.  He  was  under  the  influence  especially  of  the 
mystical  writings  of  Boehme  and  later  of  Gottfried  Arnold, 
while  Mack  had  been  influenced  by  the  latter' s  historical 
writings  only. 

The  rough  life  that  Beissel  had  always  led  made  him 
susceptible  to  this  mystical  influence.  Furthermore,  he 
had  not  been  a  Dunker  in  Europe,  he  had  joined  the 
Inspirationists.  He  knew  of  the  Dunkers,  but  they  had 
had  no  influence  upon  him  there.  He  was  not  acquainted 
with  their  ideals  and  their  mode  of  worship,  except  in  a 
general  way.  Experience  of  their  mode  of  life,  of  their 
way  of  transacting  business,  and  of  their  ecclesiasticism 
Beissel  lacked.  He  had  not  experienced  the  evil  effects 
of  communism,  which  experience  had  made  the  Dunkers 
react  against  that  feature  of  church  life  after  seven  years 
of  trial  in  Germany.  The  year  that  Beissel  had  spent 
with  Becker  in  Germantown  was  before  the  Dunkers 
commenced  religious  services.  Therefore,  "Beissel  was 
utterly  without  experience  in  Dunker  church  life,  when 
at  the  close  of  his  year  with  Becker  he  went  out  into  the 
Conestoga  wilderness. 

On  the  other  hand,  in  that  region  his  contact  with  the 


EARLY  HISTORY  12s 

English  Sabbatarians,  the  Jews  and  the  Labadists  and 
his  imitation  of  them  exaggerated  his  already  existing 
social  unlikeness  to  the  Dunkers. 

All  such  influences  were  lacking  to  the  Germantown 
Dunkers.  By  Mack  and  his  followers  the  mystical  was 
looked  upon  with  suspicion.  Also,  their  experiences 
with  communism  and  celibacy  in  Germany  had  not  been 
such  as  to  cause  them  to  look  upon  the  experiment  in 
America  with  any  degree  of  favor.  Furthermore,  the 
fact  that  they  were  organized  prevented  the  adoption  of 
many  doctrines  that  some  members  may  have  favored. 
Environment,  experience,  numbers  and  organization  all 
united  in  determining  that  the  Dunkers  at  Germantown 
should  not  agree  with  Beissel's  views.* 

This  division  brought  new  influences  to  bear  upon  both 
the  "Beisselainers"  and  the  Dunkers.  The  hard  feelings 
between  them  were  deepened,  when  some  from  each  side 
went  over  to  the  other  side.  The  influence  that  the  less 
mystical  Dunkers  had  hitherto  exercised  over  the  adher- 
ents of  Beissel  was  cut  off,  and  Beissel's  influence,  tend- 
ing to  make  the  Dunkers  more  mystical,  ceased  to  act 
upon  them.  Beissel  came  no  more  into  their  meetings, 
and  leading  Dunkers,  like  Mack  and  Becker,  visited 
Beissel's  followers  less  frequently  than  before,  although 
members  of  the  two  congregations  still  mingled  occasion- 
ally, t 

What  the  result  would  have  been,  had  the  two  groups 
continued  freely  to  react  upon  each  other  we  can  only 
conjecture.  It  is  probable  that  the  Dunkers  would  have 
become  more  mystical,   and  the  "Beisselainers"  might 

*I  have  dwelt  upon  this  first  and  most  fateful  division  in  America,  so  far 
as  the  early  days  are  concerned,  because  it  has  never  been  explained,  and 
because  of  its  influence  negatively  on  the  later  history  of  the  Dunkers. 

t"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  95. 


1U  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

have  given  up  some  of  their  mystical  tendencies.  Social 
homogeneity  might  have  been  achieved  in  due  time. 
However,  the  differing  situations  of  the  two  congrega- 
tions, the  one  in  settled  German  town,  and  the  other  in 
wild  Conestoga,  tended  toward  differentiation,  although 
it  might  not  have  ended  in  division,  if  they  could  have 
been  kept  united  until  after  civilization  had  transformed 
the  wilderness. 

As  a  result  of  the  separation,  the  Dunkers  reacted 
against  the  mystical,  and  laid  more  stress  on  the  Script- 
ures while  the  "Beisselainers",  although  revering  the 
Scriptures,  continued  to  rest  more  heavily  on  the  immediate 
guidance  of  the  Spirit,  especially  as  revealed  in  Beissel.* 
Henceforth,  the  two  parties,  representing  the  two  ten- 
dencies that  had  been  combined  in  the  Dunker  church  at 
the  time  of  its  origin  at  Schwarzenau,  were  clearly 
differentiated.  Each  went  its  own  way.  The  one  be- 
came the  developing  Dunker  church;  the  other  a  small 
community  that  was  doomed  to  die  with  the  passing  away 
of  the  wilderness  environment  that  had  cradled  it. 

The  sociological  significance  of  the  history  up  to  this 
point  is  that  it  illustrates  the  theory  of  social  causation 
that  we  have  traced  in  the  earlier  history  in  Europe. 
The  character  of  the  Conestoga  wilderness  conditioned 
the  kind  of  people  that  went  there.  It  attracted  men 
like  Beissel,  who  wished  to  get  away  from  other  men,  live 
in  solitude  with  God,  and  mortify  the  body.  Therefore, 
it  was  a  home  for  mystics  and  fanatics.  It  attracted  peo- 
ple that  wanted  an  isolated  region  in  which  they  might 
work  out  their  peculiar  ideas,  like  the  Sabbatarians.  Men 
that  had  failed  elsewhere,  as  well  as  the  more  adventur- 
ous sought  it  out.    And,  finally,  it  attracted  some  men 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  passim. 


EARL  T  HIS  TOR  T  125 

that  were  too  poor  to  settle  in  places  where  the  land  was 
higher  in  price. 

Socially  the  inhabitants  were  an  unformed  mass.  There 
was  no  political  association  to  draw  them  together.  The 
environment  had  determined  that  many  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  region  should  be  susceptible  to  such  ideals  as  Beis- 
sel's.  As  soon  as  enough  people  were  assembled  in  the 
Conestoga  country  the  instinctive  response  of  each  to  the 
difficulties  of  his  environment  suggested  association  with 
the  others.  The  common  dangers,  economic  necessity, 
and  the  inherited  social  instincts  all  prompted  it.  This 
led  to  instinctive  associations,  such  as  were  realized  in 
neighborly  visits.  But  instinctive  association  soon  led 
to  purposive  association  of  an  unorganized  character,  such 
as  co-operation  in  building  a  hut  or  clearing  and  sowing  a 
field.  By  such  means  social  intercourse  was  developed, 
and  the  way  for  discussion  was  opened.  People  with  a 
past  history  such  as  most  of  these  people  possessed 
naturally  soon  came  to  the  discussion  of  religion,  because 
of  the  sadly  neglected  state  of  religion  in  the  wilderness. 
This  talk  suggested  the  holding  of  wholly  unorganized 
religious  meetings  to  remedy  the  sad  state  of  affairs.  In 
these  meetings,  of  course,  such  a  man  as  Beissel,  a  man 
of  superior  natural  gifts  and  wider  experience,  took  the 
lead  by  common  consent.  Thus,  partly  instinctively, 
partly  purposely,  grew  up  the  first  unorganized  religious 
associations,  in  response  to  an  ideal  that  had  resulted 
from  social  tradition  and  discussion. 

The  past  experiences  of  the  people  who  agreed  that  a 
revival  of  religion  was  needed  had  been  only  sufficiently 
alike  to  permit  agreement  on  the  general  need.  On  the 
more  specific  questions  of  the  things  to  be  taught  and 
the  kind  of  organization  needed  there  was  variety  of 
opinion.     Beissel  responded  most  quickly  and  energeti- 


126  TEE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

cally  to  the  stimuli  of  his  wilderness  environment  and  to 
the  secondary  stimuli  presented  in  the  ideals  of  the  Sab- 
batarians, Jews,  and  his  fellows  in  Conestoga  as  well  as 
to  the  suggestions  of  men  whose  teachings  he  had  read 
and  heard.  Reacting  on  this  situation  in  Conestoga  Beis- 
sel  conceived  of  a  sort  of  organization  to  conserve  the 
religious  interests  of  the  community.  Thus,  sprang  up 
the  organization  of  the  congregation  at  Conestoga. 

At  first  it  could  not  yet  be  called  Dunker,  because  Beissel 
was  not  yet  a  Dunker.  Probably  the  best  description 
would  be  to  say  that  it  was  a  congregation  of  mystical 
Pietists. 

On  the  first  visit  of  Becker  and  the  Germantown 
Dunkers,  another  and  more  definite  ideal  was  presented 
that  resulted  in  some,  at  least,  of  this  congregation  be- 
coming Dunkers.  Whether  the  whole  congregation  re- 
sponded to  this  ideal  or  not  we  are  unable  to  say.  It  was 
this  Dunker  congregation,  modified  according  to  the  pe- 
culiar ideals  of  Beissel,  that  he  left,  when  he  went  to 
Ephrata. 

Its  importance  for  us  is  that  it  shows  us  the  process  by 
which  a  social  organization  comes  into  being.  The  mate- 
rial environment  determined  the  population  of  the  coun- 
try where  it  originated.  The  population  of  the  Conesto- 
ga region  conditioned  the  sort  of  organization  demanded, 
at  first  but  loosely  united  on  some  general  principles 
only.  Later  a  presentation  of  a  new  ideal  by  the  Dunk- 
ers and  the  lack  of  competing  ideals  determined  the  more 
compact  organization  on  the  narrower  lines  of  an  organized 
Dunker  church. 

b.    Later  Period :    BeisseVs  Separate  Community. 
For  about  seven  years  Beissel  had  charge  of  the  Cones- 
togo  congregation.*    In  1728  Saturday  was  adopted  by 

*uChronicon  Ephratense",  p  63. 


EARL  T  HIS  TOR  Y  m 

this  congregation  as  the  Sabbath.  Hitherto  Sunday  had 
been  devoted  to  the  services,  and  Saturday  was  kept  in 
quiet.*  In  the  same  year  the  formal  rupture  was  made 
by  Beissel,  who  ugave  back  their  baptism"  to  the  Dunk- 
ers,  as  he  said,  by  having  all  his  adherents  baptized  over 
again.     About  the  same  time  a  revival  occurred.  \ 

In  1732,  perhaps  in  March,  Beissel  suddenly  left  the 
congregation,  after  appointing  some  elders  to  take  charge 
and  giving  them  a  New  Testament  with  which  to  govern 
the  congregation,  and  went  eight  miles  to  the  northwest, 
to  the  place  now  called  Ephrata,  which  was  then  a  wilder- 
ness, and  took  up  his  abode  in  a  small  hut  that  had  been 
built  by  Emanuel  Echerle.  In  September  of  that  year, 
however,  Beissel  called  together  the  heads  of  the  congre- 
gation of  Conestoga,  to  consider  the  affairs  of  the  church 
at  that  place.  Reports  had  come  to  him  that  things  there 
were  going  badly.  Beissel  now  practically  assumed  con-. 
trol  of  the  congregation  again.  Soon  afterwards  several 
of  the  unmarried  men  and  women  of  the  congregation  at 
Conestoga  followed  Beissel  to  Ephrata.  There  gradually 
grew  up  about  him  at  that  place  a  settlement  that  has  be- 
come famous  in  American  religious  history. 

About  1732  by  means  of  an  "awakening",  aroused  by 
the  efforts  of  Beissel,  in  the  Tulpehocken  church,  a  union 
congregation  composed  of  Lutherans  and  Reformed,  but 
under  the  care  of  a  Reformed  pastor,  Beissel  obtained 
an  opportunity  to  present  his  views  to  that  people.  He 
won  over  to  his  side  the  pastor,  Peter  Miller,  one  of  the 
most  learned  men  in  America  at  that  time,  and  Conrad 
Weiser,  a  man  of  wide  influence,  an  elder  in  this  congre- 
gation and  an  authority  on  Indian  affairs,  who  on  this  ac- 

*Ibid  p.  44. 

tLetter  in  "Geistliche  Fama",  1731,  Drittes  Stuech,   p  21.     (In  Penna. 
His.  Soc.  Library.) 


128  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

count  stood  in  high  esteem  with  the  government.* 
Through  their  influence  and  that  gained  by  his  success 
in  promoting  the  revival  among  them  Beissel  was  enabled 
to  win  over  to  his  peculiar  views  two  other  elders,  the 
schoolmaster  of  the  congregation,  and  "about  ten  fami- 
lies" of  the  membership  of  the  Tulpehocken  church. t 
Not  later  than  May,  1735,  these  were  all  baptized  and 
joined  the  church  over  which  he  had  presided  before  he 
left  for  Ephrata,  and  over  which  he  even  yet  exercised 
practical  supervision.  % 

The  reasons  for  the  change  are  to  be  found  in  the  con- 
ditions of  the  country,  and  the  personality  of  Beissel. 
In  an  age  of  loose  morals  in  the  church,  as  well  as  out- 
side of  it,  it  was  natural  that  men  of  the  deep  seriousness 
of  these  Germans  should  revolt  against  sexual  sin.  But 
their  reaction  against  this  sin  led  them  to  attack  matri- 
mony by  a  very  common  logical  error.  This  austerity, 
developed  in  Germany  in  reaction  against  the  loose 
morals  of  the  time,  was  strengthened  by  what  they  saw 
of  domestic  conditions  in  America.  It  was  often  the 
custom  in  the  wilderness  of  Pennsylvania  for  a  man  to 
have  two  wives.  Contemporary  records  present  us  a 
picture  of  morals  that  is  anything  but  elevated.**  It  was 
in  reaction  against  this  state  of  things  that  Beissel  adopt- 

*See,  "Colonial  Records'',  Index,  "Conrad  Weiser". 

tBoehm's  letter  in  "Minutes  and  Letters  of  the  Coetus  in  Pennsylva- 
nia", p8. 

JBoehm  says  April,  Ibid,  p  2,  3,  8;  cf.  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  73. 
These  people  did  not  move  to  Ephrata,  however,  until  some  time  later. 
This  change  on  the  part  of  Miller  and  a  portion  of  his  flock  was  not  a  sud- 
.  den  one,  but  the  outcome  of  about  five  years  of  friendly  intercourse  between 
him  and  Beissel.  Already  in  1732  Miller  had  gone  to  the  house  of  one  of 
Beissel's  followers  and  joined  with  them  in  the  rite  of  Feet  Washing. 

**Cf.  MittelbergerV  Journey  toPenna.,  in  the  year  1750"  trans,  by Theo. 
>V    Eben:  Philadelphia,  1898. 


EARL  Y  HIS  TOR  Y  m 

ed  the  suggestions  of  the  German  mystics  and  ascetics. 
In  so  doing  he  was  simply  responding  to  the  stimuli  of 
his  environment.  That  the  experience  of  Beissel  was 
shared  by  many  others  is  shown  by  the  numbers  that  he 
was  able  to  get  to  respond  to  his  ideals.  This  wilderness 
of  Conestoga  provided  all  the  favorable  conditions  that 
enabled  Beissel' s  followers  to  realize  the  ideals  un- 
hindered. 

Moreover,  it  was  a  time  of  great  religious  uncertainty 
in  Pennsylvania.  To  those  that  were  used  to  the  settled 
religious  usages  of  Europe,  the  conditions  in  America 
seemed  to  verge  on  heathenism.*  All  sorts  of  sects 
were  tolerated,  and  sprang  up  everywhere.  As  most  of 
the  people  had  come  to  Pennsylvania  to  escape  from 
religious  intolerance,  it  was  but  natural  that  in  the 
atmosphere  of  toleration  there  they  should  sometimes  go 
too  far  in  their  new  found  freedom. 

People  were  unsettled  in  religious  matters.  Coming 
from  a  land  of  despotism  and  from  thickly  settled  com- 
munities into  a  land  where  each  one  was  free  to  be  relig- 
ious or  not  as  he  pleased,  and  into  a  country  sparsely 
settled,  the  absence  of  the  usual  moral  and  religious 
restraints  loosened  rigid  habits,  and  made  some  men 
careless  of  religious  customs  that  hitherto  had  been 
matters  of  course. 

Coming  from  a  land  where  school  and  church  privileges 
were  provided  for  them  without  thought  or  care,  on  their 
part,  to  a  land  where  all  had  to  be  provided  at  their  own 
cost,  they  neglected  these  matters,  when  they  had  all 
they  could  do  to  make  a  living.  There  were  few  preach- 
ers and  schoolmasters.  They  had  no  one  to  guide  them 
in  religious  and  moral  affairs. 

*See  the  dialogues  between   the  traveler  and  the  farmer  in   Sauer's 
"Almanacs",  Penna.  Historical  Society  Library,  Philadelphia. 


ISO  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

Furthermore,  religious  deadness,  coupled  with  memo- 
ries of  a  different  state  in  other  days,  made  these  people 
susceptible  to  such  an  "awakening''  as  Beissel  knew  how 
to  promote.  The  circumstances  of  their  wilderness  life 
made  them  defer  to  the  power  of  the  few  strong  charac- 
ters with  whom  they  came  in  contact.  Already  affected 
with  Pietism  many  were  open  to  BeissePs  message. 
These  facts,  with  the  dominating  personality  of  Beissel, 
and  their  frontier  life  account  for  the  notable  accession 
of  members,  which  so  strengthened  BeissePs  cause  at 
this  time  of  need. 

In  1734  members  of  the  congregation  at  Falckner's 
Swamp,  which  Beissel  had  so  large  a  part  in  organizing, 
began  to  move  to  Ephrata,  that  they  might  be  near 
Beissel,  "so  that  in  a  few  years  the  country  for  from 
three  to  four  miles  around  was  occupied  by  this  kind  of 
people".* 

In  1735  for  the  unmarried  female  followers  of  Beissel 
the  communistic  mode  of  life  began  to  supplant  the  her- 
mitical  mode.  Hitherto  those  that  had  followed  Beissel 
to  Ephrata  had  lived  each  in  his  own  separate  hut.  Now 
the  first  building  for  common  use  was  begun.  Some  of 
the  married  followers  of  Beissel  contributed  what  prop- 
erty they  possessed  to  the  fund  for  the  erection  of  other 
buildings,  t  The  male  "solitary"  brethren  established 
the  communistic  life  in  1738. 

Soon  after  this  Beissel  began  to  urge  upon  the  married 
people  the  necessity  of  practising  continence.  A  great 
many  of  them  separated  from  their  husbands  and  wives, 
the  men  living  in  one  apartment,  the  women  in  another. 
The  families  that  refused  to  break  up  had  their  own  house- 
hold economy  in  the  settlement.     They  did  not  mingle 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense,"  p  66. 
flbid,  p  79,  81. 


EARLY  HISTORY  1S1 

with  the  unmarried,  for  the  latter  were  considered  holier 
than  the  married.  In  this  household  of  the  married  eat- 
ing at  common  tables  was  introduced.*  The  "solitary" 
life  with  which  Beissel  started  out  thus  became  a  com- 
munistic life.  This  change  was  the  result  of  the  reac- 
tion of  these  people  upon  the  conditions  of  life  where 
they  lived.  The  institutions  that  grew  up  were  the  pro- 
duct of  response  to  certain  external  stimuli,  which  made 
up,  in  part,  the  environment.  In  Beissel' s  case,  as  at 
Schwarzenau,  Germany,  the  communistic  life  was  the 
result  of  reaction  on  harsh  social  conditions.  More  than 
any  of  the  Dunkers  he  had  been  a  wanderer.  The  hard 
European  experience  of  Bessielas  a  child  and  young  man, 
and  of  his  neighbors  of  Ephrata,  was  repeated  by  him  and 
most  of  his  congregation  in  America.  They  lived  on  the 
frontier,  with  the  terrors  of  savages  and  wild  beasts 
about  them,  and  an  untamed  wilderness  between  them  and 
civilization.  The  virgin  forest  had  to  be  cleared  away 
before  they  could  begin  to  raise  their  crops.  The  culti- 
vation of  the  land  was  difficult  because  of  the  lack  of 
implements  and  domestic  animals.  Even  after  he  and 
some  of  his  friends  had  moved  to  Ephrata  they  drew 
the  ploughs  themselves,  probably  because  of  the  lack  of 
horses  or  oxenf. 

Furthermore,  it  is  a  common  observation  that  pioneer 
communities  are  hospitable.  They  have  not  that  grasp- 
ing disposition  characteristic  of  older  societies.  They 
are  more  open  to  the  needs  of  men,  wealth  is  not  hoarded 
so  closely,  and  private  property  has  not  yet  become  so 
strictly  private.     Frontier  life  seems  to  make  men  more 

*Jbid,  p  83,  90. 

t A  later  age  thought  it  was  from  humane  motives,  but  the  explanation 
of  the  text  is  much  more  likely,  as  they  later  used  oxen  and  horses  in  the 
fields.  They  hitched  themselves  to  the  plow  for  the  same  reason  that  they 
went  on  foot  in  their  journeys,  because  they  had  no  other  way. 


132  THE  B  TINKERS  IN  AMERICA 

considerate  of  the  needs  of  their  fellowmen  in  certain 
matters.  The  dangers  of  the  wilderness  and  the  un- 
certainties of  existence  tend  to  promote  the  communistic 
form  of  life,  for  they  make  cooperation  necessary.  The 
communistic  settlement  at  Ephrata  was  cooperation  on  a 
large  scale. 

This  mode  of  life,  however,  was  the  result  of  response 
not  only  to  the  stimuli  of  the  material  environment,  but 
also  of  the  opposition  that  they  experienced  from  those 
about  them  who  had  misunderstood  their  aims,  or  were 
displeased  with  their  practices.  The  eccentricities  of 
Beissel's  people  attracted  the  attention  of  members  of 
other  faiths.  Their  practice  of  celibacy,  their  monkish 
dress,  their  sectarian  tendencies  raised  suspicions  against 
them.  Their  neighbors  thought  them  Jesuits,  and  free 
lovers,  and  invented  all  sorts  of  strange  stories  about 
them.  This  made  sharper  the  social  differentiation  of 
the  "Beisselainers"  from  the  other  inhabitants  of  the 
region,  and  tended  to  increase  their  zeal  for  their  ideals 
and  to  favor  the  communistic  life.  The  whole  situation 
was  just  such  as  to  favor  the  imitation  of  ascetic  and  com- 
munistic ideals,  if  not,  indeed,  to  suggest  them.  The  iso- 
lation of  the  region  and  the  community  from  outside  in- 
fluences prevented  interferences  with  the  realization  of 
Beissel's  ideals. 

That  the  communistic  features  of  Beissel's  settlement 
at  Ephrata  were  products  of  the  response  of  the  Com- 
munity to  the  stimuli  of  the  environment  is  indicated  also 
by  the  fact  that  the  communism  died  out  when  the  wilder- 
ness gave  place  to  civilization. 

An  organization  never  develops  very  far  before  its  lead- 
ers formulate  and  seek  to  enforce  a  policy  of  uniformity. 
This  is  done  for  the  purpose  of  assisting  the  process  of 
social  assimilation.     It  may  take  the  form  of  a  policy  of 


EARLY  HISTORY  m 

uniform  language,  religion,  culture  or  even  a  uniformity 
of  dress.  In  this  case  a  uniform  language,  religion  and 
dress  was  adopted.*  In  1735,  or  1736,  the  unmarried  men 
adopted  a  uniform  garb.  In  this  they  were  soon  followed 
by  the  unmarried  women,  and  finally  by  the  families,  or 
"domestic  household".  In  this  way  the  leaders  of  the 
Community  sought  to  realize  the  ideal  of  unity. 

In  1736  the  Dunkers  of  Germantown  made  a  " visita- 
tion" to  the  Community  at  Ephrata.  Notwithstanding 
the  fact  that  Beissel  once  before,  since  he  had  formally 
separated  his  congregation  from  them,  had  refused  to 
have  anything  to  do  with  them,  the  Dunkers  desired  to 
bring  about  a  reconciliation.  Beissel,  however,  refused 
to  allow  his  people  to  accept  the  overtures  of  the  Dunk- 
ers. f    This  was  the  last  attempt  to  unite  the  two  parties. 

In  1737  the  "Solitary  brethren"  at  Ephrata  came  into 
conflict  with  the  civil  authorities  over  poll  taxes.  They 
refused  to  pay  them,  on  the  ground  that,  like  the  ancient 
Egyptian  ascetics,  they  ministered  to  the  poor  of  the 
neighborhood,  and  that,  therefore,  like  their  Egyptian 
prototypes,  they  should  be  excused.  After  some  trouble 
about  it,  in  which  the  brethren  were  locked  up  in  the 
Lancaster  jail  for  ten  days,  the  Commissioners  and  As- 
sessors of  Taxes,  consented  to  remit  the  poll  tax  on  con- 
dition that  the  "solitary  brethren"  should  pay  taxes  on 
the  land  they  held 4  How  illuminating  is  this  incident! 
Living  in  a  wilderness  far  from  civil  authorities,  living 
their  own  life,  what  was  government  to  them?  All  they 
had  on  which  to  base  an  opinion  of  civil  authorities  was 
the  memory  of  a  government  that  oppressed  them. 
Notice,  moreover,  their  ground  for  refusing  to  pay  the  poll  ' 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  182. 
f'ChroDicon  Epratense",  p  95,  101. 
f'Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  87. 


134  TEE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

tax, — they  were  doing  the  same  work  as  their  Egyptian 
prototypes.  They  felt  themselves  akin  to  the  early 
Christian  ascetics,  therefore  they  lived  thus  and  re- 
fused to  pay  the  tax.  Here  clearly  appears  the  reason 
for  their  imitation  of  early  Christian  asceticism  and  mo- 
nasticism,  viz.,  consciousness  of  kind  growing  out  of  a 
like  response  to  a  similar  environment. 

About  1736  or  1737  a  revival  began  in  Germantown. 
This  revival,  like  most  of  the  "awakenings"  among  the 
Dunkers  at  this  time,  was  characterized  by  enthusiastic 
and  ecstatic  phenomena.  But  Becker  and  Nass  opposed 
the  revival  on  account  of  the  observed  consequences  of 
such  revivals  in  Germany.*  In  consequence  of  the 
opposition,  a  number  of  those  that  had  been  "awakened" 
at  this  time,  and  some  of  those  who  had  promoted  the 
revival,  left  Germantown,  and  joined  the  party  of 
Beissel  at  Ephrata.f 

Naturally,  the  desertion  of  these  persons,  among  whom 
were  two  children  of  Mack,  the  founder  of  the  Dunker 
sect,  and  several  members  of  the  original  band  of 
Schwarzenau,  caused  hard  feelings.  The  defection  is 
interesting,  because  it  shows  that,  although  the  German- 
town  church  was  growing  away  from  the  ideals  of  life 
with  which  it  had  started  out  in  Germany,  and  was  be- 
coming more  orderly  in  its  methods,  there  were  some 
among  its  members  that  had  not  shared  in  the  evolution. 
Their  attitude  shows  a  return  to  the  ideals  of  an  earlier 
time,  and  reveals  the  fact  that  social  assimilation   was 

*Cf.  Davenport,  "Primitive  Traits  in  Religious  Revivals",  passim. 

fThe  names  of  the  married  people  in  this  party  of  seceders  were,  "Henry 
Kalkglaesser,  Valentine  Mack,  John  Hildebrand,  Lewis  Hoecker,  Pettiko- 
fer,  the  widow  of  Gorgas,  and  their  children".  4To  the  solitary  belonged 
Henry  Hoecker,  Alexander  Mack  Jr.,  John  Reissmann,  Christian  Eckstein, 
Elizabeth  Eckstein,  Martha  Kinsing,  and  Miriam  Gorgas".— "Chronicon 
Ephratense",  p  101,  102. 


EARL  Y  HISTOR  T  1S5 

not  yet  complete.  Although  some  of  these  converts  to 
the  ideals  of  Beissel  returned  to  the  Dunkers  later  on, 
yet  the  falling  away  caused  a  widening  of  the  already 
existing  breach  between  the  Dunkers  and  the  followers 
of  Beissel.  That  feeling  had  run  high  between  Mack  and 
Beissel  as  early  as  1731  is  shown  by  the  notice  of  events 
in  the  uGeistliche  Fama",  which  says  that  Mack  had 
written  a  book  against  Beissel's  view  on  the  Sabbath.* 
While  for  some  time  a  feeling  of  kinship  continued  to 
exist  between  individuals  in  each  party  towards  individ- 
uals in  the  other,  the  separation  now  became  more  pro- 
nounced, and  finally  complete,  even  in  feeling.  From 
this  time  on  each  party  went  its  own  way.  That  some 
of  these  conyerts  later  returned  to  the  Dunkers  shows 
that  two  ideals  were  in  conflict  at  this  time  among  these 
Germans,  and  that  a  process  of  selection  was  determining 
the  issue  of  that  conflict.  History  and  the  wilderness 
were  with  Beissel;  experience  and  advancing  civilization 
were  on  the  side  of  the  Dunkers.  The  future  belonged  to 
the  party  at  German  town.  That  the  latter  stood  against 
the  reactionary  tendency  shows  that  a  new  day  in  Dun- 
ker  history  was  dawning. 

The  defection  of  Beissel  and  his  party  from  the  Dunker 
church  resulted,  thus,  in  the  separation  of  the  two  differ- 
ent conceptions  of  life  that  had  been  held  simultaneously, 
more  or  less  loosely,  by  the  Dunkers  from  the  beginning 
of  their  history  in  1708.  The  ascetic  conception,  that  of 
Beissel,  had  originated  in  a  time  of  harsh  experiences.  It 
was  the  practical  response  of  an  oppressed  people  to  the 
stimuli  of  an  unfavorable  environment.  The  other  con- 
ception, that  of  the  main  Dunker  party  at  Germantown, 
was  the  fruit  of  a  more  settled  history.  Hitherto,  both 
had  existed  side  by  side  in  the  Dunker  church,  now  the 

*Drittes  Stuech,  1731,  p  51. 


136  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

one  and  now  the  other  predominating,  according  to  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  time.  Here  they  became  clearly  differ- 
entiated. That  Beissel  still  held  to  the  ascetic,  ecstatic 
and  communistic  ideal  meant  that  the  D  linkers  ceased  to 
hold  it.  This  came  about  for  two  reasons :  (1)  because  a 
consciousness  of  unlikeness  determined  that  the  Dunkers 
should  refuse  to  hold  what  Beissel  and  his  followers  be- 
lieved; (2)  because,  consciousness  of  kind  selected  the 
members  from  each  party  according  to  the  ideal  held  by 
that  party.  That  was  the  significance  of  Beissel  and  his 
community  for  tne  history  of  the  Dunker  church.  His 
separation  from  them  meant  the  definite  and  final  repu- 
diation of  his  ideals.  That  repudiation  determined  that 
the  Dunker  church  should  not  be  a  celibate  and  commu- 
nistic community,  subject  to  the  domination  of  the  Spirit 
in  one  man,  but  a  church  organized  on  democratic  prin- 
ciples, living  its  life  in  the  world,  and  governed  by  the 
Spirit  of  God  working  on  the  hearts  of  all  its  members. 
Therefore,  the  influence  of  Beissel  upon  the  development 
of  the  Dunker  church  was  very  significant. 

The  followers  of  Beissel  built  up  the  Community  at 
Ephrata  step  by  step  until  it  attained  considerable  im- 
portance in  the  life  of  the  frontier.  Beginning  with  a 
bake-house  and  public  granary,  they  soon  added  to  the 
plant  a  saw  and  grist  mill,  a  woolen  mill  and  paper  mill. 
There  was  also  a  tannery  and  a  pottery  furnace.  As  ear]y 
as  1745  a  printing  press  and  a  book  bindery  were  estab- 
lished.* All  this  industrial  advance  was  made  while  the 
Community  was  under  the  control  of  the  Echerlin  broth- 
ers and  for  the  purpose  of  supporting  the  Brotherhood 
of  unmarried  brethren,  who  had  hitherto  been  supported 
by  the  offerings  of  the  Community.    After  the  dethrone- 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  140  f  ;  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Breth- 
ren", p,  456. 


EARL  Y  HIS  TOR  T  iS7 

ment  of  the  Echerlins  and  the  return  of  Beissel  to  the 
ascendancy,  these  signs  of  progress,  which  were  looked 
upon  as  "worldly"  by  the  most  of  the  members,  were 
allowed  to  fall  into  decay  or  were  burnt  down.  The  mem- 
bers, moreover,  had  groaned  under  the  Echerlins'  se- 
verely industrial  and  commercial  policy.*  The  money 
that  was  accumulated  under  the  wise  management  of 
these  able  brothers  and  which  had  been  loaned  out  by 
Israel  Echerlin,  the  Prior  of  the  Brotherhood  in  Zion,  as 
the  unmarried  male  members  were  called,  was  now  soon 
dissipated  by  Beissel  in  gifts  to  beggars  and  in  paying  the 
debts  of  false  members. f  The  fine  orchards  that  the 
Echerlins  had  planted  were  rooted  up4  The  industry 
that  had  been  built  up  went  to  nothing.  In  spite  of  the 
fact  that  there  were  accessions  from  different  quarters 
at  various  periods,  the  beginning  of  the  decline  of  the 
Community  dates  from  this  period.  The  Echerlins  had 
seen  which  way  the  logic  of  events  was  leading.  They 
endeavored  to  meet  the  new  situation  and  adapt  the  Com- 
munity to  the  changed  environment.  But  they  were  in  a 
minority.  The  circumstances  demanded  that  the  Com- 
munity enlarge  its  scope  to  meet  the  needs  of  a  develop- 
ing country.  When  it  decided  to  remain  stationary,  the 
Community  sealed  its  own  doom. 

Confirmatory  of  this  is  the  number  of  unmarried  breth- 
ren and  sisters  in  the  Community  at  different  times. 
Thus,  when  in  1738  the  community  life  of  the  "solitary" 
brethren  was  established,  17  "solitary  brethren"  moved 
from  their  huts  into  Zion  and  became  the  Zionitic  Broth- 
erhood, a  kind  of  monk's  Order.  In  1740  there  were  36 
single  men  in  this  Brotherhood  and  35  single  women  in 

*"Chronicon  Ephrateuse",  p  139,  170  f.,  209  f. 
t"Ibid,  p  199-205,  137. 
tfbid,  p  193. 


188  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

the  corresponding  Sisterhood.  About  1745  there  were 
approximately  70  persons  in  both  orders,  besides  the 
"household"  economy  of  the  married  members  and  their 
children,  of  which  at  one  time  there  were  nearly  300 
members  in  the  vicinity.  In  1746  there  were  34  single 
brethren,  while  the  next  year  there  were  80  members 
that  belonged  to  the  orders.  In  1764  there  were  21  males 
and  25  females.  In  1769  there  were  but  14  males  in  the 
Brotherhood.  This  is  the  last  we  hear  of  the  exact  num- 
ber of  the  unmarried  men  and  women.  When  this  cel- 
ibate feature  of  the  Society  disappeared  we  do  not  know. 
Sometime  before  1865  the  Brother-house  was  occupied  by 
sisters,  hence  before  that  time  the  Brotherhood  must 
have  ceased  to  exist. 

Not  only  the  celibate  orders  died  out,  but  the  member- 
ship in  general  decreased  gradually  after  the  middle  of 
the  eighteenth  century.  In  1769,  according  to  Dr.  Fahne- 
stock,  a  member  of  the  community,  there  were  but  forty 
families,  with  135  members  all  told  including  both  the 
celibate  men  and  women  and  the  households.  Of  these 
14  were  male  celibates. 

In  1830  at  a  meeting  of  the  Society,  a  motion  was  passed 
that  the  Society  should  allow  members  to  vote  by  proxy 
on  account  of  the  inconvenience  of  attending  the  meetings. 
This  shows  that  the  members  were  becoming  widely  scat- 
tered. In  1827,  the  first  date  from  which  minutes  have 
been  preserved,  there  were  but  20  men  and  15  women 
that  attended  the  business  meeting  of  the  Society.  In 
1839  only  20  members  voted;  in  1843,  the  number  had 
dwindled  to  13.  After  this  date  the  voting  membership 
rose  to  14  in  1847,  22  in  1855  and  29  in  1875.  In  the  sum- 
mer of  1904,  when  I  visited  the  Community,  the  celibate 
mode  of  life  had  entirely  disappeared  and  the  member- 
ship   about  Ephrata    was    limited   to  twelve  or  fifteen 


EARL  T  HIS  TOR  T  139 

members.  The  only  trace  of  the  communistic  feature 
remaining  was  the  ownership  of  the  property  by  the  So- 
ciety, which  is  controlled  by  a  board  of  trutees.*  There 
the  old  buildings  stand,  which  expressed  the  hopes  of 
earnest  men  and  women  to  establish  a  place  where  the 
warring,  selfish,  and  sinful  tendencies  of  the  wicked 
world  should  be  shut  out.  It  was  a  dream,  the  splendor 
of  which,  in  the  eyes  of  these  people,  is  attested  by  the 
serious  way  in  which  they  went  about  to  realize  it.  But 
it  was  a  dream  that  the  composition  of  the  population 
round  about  made  unrealizable.  They  had  to  learn  by 
hard  experience,  that  no  man  and  no  community  can  live 
unto  itself.  The  great  unfriendly  world  pressed  in  upon 
Ephrata  'dimming  its  glorious  vision,  and  finally  over- 
came it. 

Yet,  in  spite  of  the  strange  events  that  marked  its  his- 
tory and  this  reversion  to  a  mode  of  life  whose  day  was 
past,  the  Ephrata  Community  was  a  light  in  a  great  wil- 
derness, not  only  in  spiritual  affairs,  but  also  in  matters 
industrial,  educational  and  charitable  at  a  time  of  great 
need  in  the  history  of  Pennsylvania.  Her  buildings  were 
gladly  devoted  to  serve  as  hospitals  for  the  wounded  sol- 
diers of  the  Revolutionary  Army  after  the  battle  of 
Brandy  wine.  She  had  one  of  the  first  schools  in  all  that 
country.  Her  printing  establishment  was  one  of  the  ear- 
liest and  best  that  printed  in  the  German  language  in 
America. 

The  further  history  of  this  interesting  experiment  it 
is  not  our  purpose  to  follow.  The  important  steps  in  its 
history  have  been  noticed.  Its  origin  as  a  voluntary 
association  to  remedy  religious  indifference  in  the  wilder- 

*Holsinger,  "History  of  theTuokers,"  p  139;  "Cnronicon  Ephratense," 
p  106,  192, 193;  Minutes  in  possession  of  the  Trustees  of  the  Society  at 
Ephrata;    Rupp's  "History  of  Lancaster  County,"  p  217. 


140  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

ness  and  its  development  into  a  Dunker  eogregation  has 
been  traced.  Its  development  as  a  congregation  in  the 
adoption  of  the  Sabbath,  and  of  a  Jewish  legalism, 
and  its  emphasis  on  celibacy  were  noticed.  We  then 
saw  the  steps  by  which  its  history  was  separated  from 
the  Dunkers  and  the  further  development  from  a 
church  into  a  community.  The  social  development  of 
this  Society  was  then  traced  from  a  simple  unorganized 
collection  of  like-minded  people  into  a  completely  organ- 
ized body  with  a  well  developed  constitution  and  a  unified 
policy.  The  critical  period  in  its  development  was  then 
noticed,  when  it  turned  back  from  the  path  of  industrial 
development  marked  out  by  the  Echerlins,  and  its  subse- 
quent gradual  decay. 

It  remains  only  to  explain  its  decadence.  After 
Ephrata  was  transformed  from  a  wilderness  by  the  ad- 
vancing tide  of  civilization  and  became  a  comparatively 
well  settled  place,  and  after  the  physical  environment 
made  possible  a  different  intellectual  and  religious  life, 
the  Community  began  to  lose  its  influence  and  power. 
Some  have  thought  that  it  went  down  because  Beissel's 
successor,  Peter  Miller,  was  not  the  equal  of  the  former 
as  a  manager  of  the  Community.  On  the  contrary,  in 
every  respect,  except  in  the  eccentric  personality  of 
Beissel,  Miller  was  vastly  his  superior.  He  was  one  of 
the  best  educated  men  in  the  Colonies.  He  had  the  solid 
characteristics  of  the  best  Germans.  His  temper  was 
much  more  even  and  his  eccentricities  much  less  pro- 
nounced. He  was  not  so  erratic  and  overbearing.  And, 
finally,  he  had  none  of  Beissel's  petty  vices.  The  reason 
for  the  decadence  of  Ephrata  lay  not  so  much  in  the  diff- 
erence in  the  two  men  that  stood  at  its  head  as  in  the 
changed  circumstances  of  its  social  surroundings.  The 
crisis  was  reached,  when  in  1745  the  Community  turned 


EARLY  HISTORY 


W 


its  back  upon  its  opportunity  to  welcome  the  new  era 
that  had  dawned  socially  in  the  Conestoga  wilderness. 
Then  was  its  chance  to  become  an  industrial  centre  and 
contribute  to  the  development  of  the  country  in  which  it 
was  located.  It  chose  to  revert,  however,  to  the  religious 
self -centralization  characteristic  of  its  earlier  history, 
and  in  so  doing  failed  to  adapt  itself  to  the  changing  con- 
ditions of  its  environment.  In  time  a  process  of  natural 
selection  destroyed  it. 

Thus,  Ephrata  arose  in  response  to  a  need  felt  by  cer- 
tain elements  in  the  population  on  the  frontier  of  Pennsyl- 
vania. But,  when  the  wilderness  receded  before  popula- 
tion and  civilized  conditions,  when  peace  succeded  war  and 
oppression,  and  when,  instead  of  a  grudging  reward  for 
patient  toil,  the  land  yielded  bountifully,  and  there  was 
an  unlimited  demand  from  outside  the  community  for 
what  it  produced,  the  stimuli  that  had  created  the  com- 
munity ceased  to  act.  Its  ideals  died  with  the  environ- 
ment that  gave  them  birth. 

Io  German  town,  with  its  more  heterogeneous  composi- 
tion, the  ascetic  and  mystical  Dunker  heritage,  brought 
from  Germany,  was  sloughed  off  sooner  than  it  was  in 
the  wilderness  at  Ephrata.  A  gradually  changing  en- 
vironment, differing  stimuli,  increasing  differences  in 
the  composition  of  the  groups,  and  therefore  gradually 
differing  ideals, — these  facts  make  up  the  explanation  of 
the  two  diverging  developments  of  the  same  historic 
movement.     ' 


CHAPTER  III. 


Expansion  of  the  Dunkers  in  America. 

As  we  saw  in  the  last  chapter,  the  Dunkers  had  no 
sooner  arrived  in  America  than  they  scattered  to  various 
parts  adjoining  German  town.  However,  it  was  only  when 
land  became  dearer  in  Eastern  Pennsylvania  that  they 
sold  their  farms  there  and  sought  new  and  cheaper  ones 
in  the  south  and  west.  This  movement  of  the  Dunkers 
from  the  places  where  they  first  settled  to  newer  por- 
tions of  the  country  is  described  by  the  title  at  the  head 
of  this  chapter. 

This  expansion  must  now  be  traced  in  some  detail.  Up 
to  1770  the  following  churches  had  been  organized  besides, 
doubtless,  some  scattered  members  elsewhere. 

The  first  Dunker  church  to  be  organized  in  America, 
the  one  at  Germ  an  town,  in  1770  had  50  members  in  40 
families. 

In  the  previous  chapter  the  origin  of  the  Coventry 
church,  the  second  in  America,  was  noticed.  It  was  or- 
ganized in  1724,  with  nine  members.*  In  1770  it  had  70 
members,  f 

A  few  days  later  the  Conestoga  church  was  organized. 
This  was  the  one  over  which  Beissel  was  elected  teacher, 
an  event  that  occasioned  the  trouble  between  Conestoga 
and  the  Germantown  Dunkers.  Eleven  of  the  Conestoga 
members  went  with  Beissel.  Twenty  seven,  however, 
remained  in  allegiance  to  the  Dunkers  of  Germantown. 
There  has  always  since  been  a  church  at  Conestoga,  or 
as  it  is  sometimes  called,  Cocalieo.  After  Beissel 's  de- 
fection, Peter   Becker  ministered   to  this   church   until 

*Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  274;  Cf.  "Chronicon  Eph- 
ratense",  p  22. 

flbid,  p  296. 


EXPANSION  143 

1734,  when  Michael  Frantz  was  placed  over  it.  At  this 
time  there  was  a  reorganization  of  the  congregation.  In 
1734,  or  1735,  this  congregation  had  20  members;  in  1747, 
or  1748,  it  had  200  members*;  and  before  1790  it  had  re- 
ceived a  total  of  463  members,  f  In  1770  there  were  53 
families  connected  with  this  church,  comprising  86  per- 
sons in  full  communion. 

It  appears  from  the  "Chronicon"  that  there  were  small 
numbers  of  Dunkers  at  Skippack,  Falckner's  Swamp  and 
Oley  as  early  as  1722.  X  These  places  were  on  the  route 
often  taken  at  that  time  from  Germantown  to  the  Cones- 
toga  country. 

In  1770  there  were  20  members  at  Oley.  Its  formal 
organization  seems  to  have  occurred  late,  but  doubtless 
there  were  members  there  from  the  first,  as  this  was  one 
of  the  places  at  which  Becker  and  his  party  stopped  in 
their  first  "visitation".** 

According  to  Edwards,  the  Great  Swamp  congregation 
was  organized  in  1733. 

In  the  same  year  the  congregation  at  Amwell,  New 
Jersey,  was  organized,  although  probably  some  of  the 
members  who  formed  the  nucleus  of  these  two  congrega- 
tions had  settled  in  these  places  previously. 

The  White  Oak  congregation,  which  was  near  the 
Conestoga  church,  was  organized  in  1736,  although 
already  in  1729  there  had  come  into  that  region  several 
persons  from  Germany,  some  of  whom  probably  later 
became  members,  tt     This  and  the  Conestoga  congrega- 

*Cf.  Brumbaugh,  p  299. 

tChronicon  Ephratense,  p  118;  Record  said  to  have  been  written  by  Peter 
Becker,  quoted  by  Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers",  p  429. 

f'Chronicon  Eph."  p  24. 

**Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren,"  p  297. 

ttlbid,  p  318. 


I44  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

tions  were  under  one  elder.  In  1770  it  had  65  members, 
according  to  Morgan  Edwards.* 

In  1738  the  Little  Conewagro  congregation,  in  York 
county,  Hanover  township,  was  organized.  In  1770  it 
had  40  families  with  52  members. 

In  1741  the  Conewago  congregation,  14  miles  from  York, 
was  established.     In  1770  there  were  77  members  here. 

In  1748  the  Northkill  congregation  was  organized, 
made  up  of  members  in  Tulpehocken  and  Bern  townships, 
Berks  county.     In  1770  there  were  11  members. 

In  1756  the  Great  Swatara  congregation  was  organized, 
but  its  first  member  had  been  baptized  there  in  1752.  In 
1770  it  had  39  members. 

The  Bermudian  congregation,  in  York  county,  was  or- 
ganized in  1758.  In  1770  it  had  40  families  with  58  mem- 
bers. 

In  1758  the  Codorus  church,  in  York  county,  was  or- 
ganized.    In  1770  it  had  35  members. 

As  early  as  1760,  there  were  a  few  members  in  the  Car- 
olinas,  when  Daniel  Letter  man  and  Casper  Rowland 
moved  thither  from  Germantown,  Pennsylvania. 

In  1762  the  Stony  Creek  church,  in  Somerset  county, 
came  into  existence.  It  was  the  first  congregation  west 
of  the  Alleghanies.     In  1770  it  had  17  members. 

In  1770  the  Little  Swatara  congregation  was  formally 
organized,  although  already  in  1745  several  people  had 
settled  there  who  afterwards  became  the  first  Dunkers  in 
the  place.     In  1770  it  had  45  members. 

Thus,  in  1770  there  were  15  congregations  of  Dunkers 
in  Pennsylvania  with  a  total  membership  of  623  and 
Beissel's  congregation  at  Ephrata  with  135  members. 
Also  there  was  one  church  in  New  Jersey,  at  Amwell, 
which  in  1770  had  28  families  with  46  members.     Morgan 

*"Materials  towards  a  History  of  the  Baptists  in  America",  Vol.  on  Penna. 


EXPANSION 


145 


Edwards  states  in  1790  that  there  were  7  churches  in 
Maryland,  and  10  in  the  more  southern  states.* 

A  close  study  of  these  early  congregations  reveals  the 
interesting  fact  that  the  congregations  nearest  to  Ger- 
mantown  began  to  suffer  from  emigration  very  early  in 
their  history.  Thus,  the  Germantown  church  in  1770, 
with  a  history  of  forty  seven  years,  had  only  fifty  mem- 
bers, and  the  Coventry  church  had  only  forty  members 
left  after  forty  six  years,  while  the  Conestoga  congrega- 
tion, which  up  to  1770  had  received  three  hundred  and 
ninety  five  persons  into  membership,  had  but  eighty  six 
members  remaning  at  that  date.  These  congregations  are 
simply  illustrations  of  what  had  happened  to  all  the  Dun- 
ker  churches  in  the  older  parts  of  Pennsylvania  in  1770. 
Where  they  had  gone  is  partially  shown  by  the  statement 
of  Christopher  Sauer,  when,  in  his  letter  to  Governor 
Denny  in  1755,  he  said  that  there  were  then,  "eight  or 
nine  counties  of  German  people  in  Virginia,  where  many 
out  of  Pennsylvania  are  removed  to".t 

This  first  period  of  expansion  was  checked  by  the  out- 
break of  the  Revolutionary  War.  But  at  the  close  of  this 
war,  when  the  Indians  of  the  Northwest  Territory  had 
been  subdued,  and  the  last  signs  of  British  rule  along 
the  Lakes  had  disappeared,  the  cheap  lands  of  Ohio  at- 
tracted the  Dunkers  thither  from  Pennsylvania,  by  way 
of  Pittsburg,  and  from  Virginia  and  Maryland,  while 
some  Dunkers  crossed  the  mountains  from  Carolina  into 

*' 'Materials  towards  a  History  of  the  Baptists  in  Jersey";  Cf.  Brum- 
baugh, p  335.  In  this  account  of  the  state  of  the  church  in  America  in 
these  early  days  I  am  indebted  to  Morgan  Edwards'  works,  written  from 
1770  to  1790,  and  especially  to  Dr.  Brumbaugh's  excellent  work  on  the 
subject  in  his  "History  of  the  Brethren",  Chapter  9;  Cf.  Holsinger  "His- 
tory of  the  Tunkers",  Chapter  7. 

tSee  translation  of  Sauer's  letter  in  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Breth- 
ren", p  380,  or  Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers",  p  787. 


U6  THE  D  UNKEBS  IN  AMERICA 

Tennessee  and  Kentucky  and  thence  reached  Indiana 
and  Illinois.  From  Ohio  the  churches  spread  westward 
to  Indiana  and  Illinois,  and  thither  westward  to  Iowa, 
Kansas,  Nebraska,  the  Dakotas,  and  the  Pacific  slope. 

Prom  the  Carolinas  Dunkers  crossed  into  Kentucky 
and  preached  there  at  a  very  early  day.*  Before  1800 
Dunker  settlements  were  made  in  Simpson,  Muhlenberg 
and  Shelby  counties,  Kentucky,  by  settlers  from  Ohio, 
Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  f 

As  early  as  1799  settlers  from  Virginia  crossed  into 
what  is  now  Greenbrier  and  Washington  counties,  Tenn- 
essee. But  the  number  was  small  until  1833,  when  a 
number  of  families  came  from  Virginia.  From  that  time 
on  a  stream  of  Dunker  emigrants  kept  pouring  westward 
from  Virginia  and  the  Carolinas  into  Tennessee  and 
Kentucky. 

The  first  Dunkers  came  to  Missouri  in  1795  from  North 
Carolina  and  Pennsylvania.  In  1824  there  were  fifty 
communicants  in  Cape  Girardeau  county  and  they  were 
closely  connected  with  a  Dunker  settlement  forty  miles 
away  in  Union  county,  Illinois.  The  Dunker  churches 
of  southwestern  Missouri  have  been  organized  since  1870. 

In  1808  Jacob  Wolfe  and  George  Wolfe  Jr.  moved  from 
Kentucky  to  Union  county,  111.  The  next  year  George 
Wolfe  Sr.,  then  of  Logan  county,  Kentucky,  whither  he 
had  moved  in  1800,  from  Fayette  county,  Pennsylvania, 
preached  in  southwestern  Missouri  and  Illinois.  But  the 
first  Dunker  church  was  not  organized  in  Illinois  until 
1812.  %   The  Dunker  settlements  in  northern  Illinois  were 

*The  Dunker,   Joseph  Rodgers,  is  reported  to  have  been  the  first  white 
man  that  preached  the  Gospel  in  Kentucky. 

fHolsinge*,  "History  of  the  Tunkers",  p  762. 
JIbid,  p  402  f . 


EXPANSION  147 

made  by  people  from  Indiana  and  Ohio,  for  the  most 
part,  and  were  later. 

About  1800  Dunkers  began  moving  into  Ohio.  John 
Caylor  and  family  at  that  time  moved  into  the  Miami 
valley  from  Virginia.  About  the  same  time  Dunkers 
came  into  the  Mahoning  valley  also,  the  first  named 
valley  being  in  the  south  western  and  the  other  in  the 
north-eastern  part  of  the  state.  In  1829  some  Dunker 
families  moved  from  Montgomery  County,  Ohio,  into 
what  is  now  Elkhart  County,  Indiana.  At  the  same  date 
there  were  Dunkers  in  Union  County,  Indiana.* 

James  R.  Gish  and  other  Dunkers  emigrated  from  Vir- 
ginia to  what  is  now  Roanoke,  Illinois  in  the  fall  of  1849. 
But  an  earlier  settlement  of  Dunkers  had  come  into 
Illinois  from  Tennesee  and  Kentucky.  There  were  Dun- 
kers in  Illinois  as  early  as  1824.  About  1850  there  were 
Dunkers  in  Du  Page,  Lee,  Ogle,  Stephenson,  Adams,  and 
Union  counties,  at  least. 

According  to  the  statement  of  David  Peebler,  of  Ore- 
gon, the  first  Dunker  church  in  Iowa  was  organized  in 
1840,  or  1841,  in  Jefferson  County.  The  date  when  the 
first  Dunkers  arrived  in  that  state  is  unknown,  and 
whence  they  came.  In  1852  a  family  of  Dunkers  moved 
to  the  region  near  where  Maquoketa  now  stands,  in  Jack- 
son County.  In  1854  Dunkers  settled  in  Linn  County, 
Iowa,  and  in  1856  the  church  south  of  Waterloo,  Iowa,  in 
Black  Hawk  County,  was  organized.  In  both  the  latter 
cases  the  settlers  were  from  Pennsylvania,  the  former 
from  Blair,  the  latter  from  Somerset  County. 

Thus,  in  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Missouri  and  Iowa  the 
two  streams  of  Dunker  migration,  the  one  by  the  way  of 
Maryland,  Virginia,  the  Carolinas,  Tennessee  and  Ken- 

*Holsinger,  ' 'History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc.,"  p  334,  401. 


148  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

tucky,  the  other  through  western  Pennsylvania,  Ohio  and 
Indiana,  once  more  met. 

In  1867  there  were  Dunker  people  at  Salem,  Albany  and 
Lebanon,  Oregon.  The  first  members  probably  settled 
in  Oregon  in  1852,  going  from  Illinois  across  the  plains 
and  mountains  in  wagons,  and  settled  eight  miles  above 
Oregon  City.* 

As  early  as  1856  we  find  Dunker  members  in  California, 
whither  they  had  moved  from  Illinois,  t 

This  account  of  the  spread  of  the  Dunker  people  is  by 
no  means  complete.  Nevertheless,  it  is  all  that  pub- 
lished material,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  will  enable  one  to 
say  about  the  early  development,  and  it  enables  us  to  get 
a  fairly  complete  conception  of  the  distribution,  if  not  of 
the  numbers,  of  the  Dunker  migrations  up  to  the  time 
of  the  Civil  War. 

This  movement  took  place  in  response  to  the  economic 
motive.  The  other  causes  that  moved  them  to  migrate 
to  America  were  no  longer  operative.  Desire  to  better 
their  condition  financially,  was  the  only  cause  that  led 
them  to  forsake  communities  already  fairly  well  settled, 
to  seek  the  frontier,  to  turn  their  backs  upon  church  and 
educational  privileges  for  themselves  and  their  children, 
to  hide  themselves  in  the  forests  and  mountains  of  Penn- 
sylvania, Virginia,  Maryland,  the  Carolinas,  Tennessee, 
Kentucky,  and  the  prairies  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi 
valleys. 

The  direction  of  this  expansion,  however,  was  deter- 
mined by  other  factors  in  addition  to  the  economic.  The 
physical  character  of  the  country  was  one  thing 
that  determined  where  the  Dunkers  went.  If  the 
reader  will  take  the  trouble   to    follow  geographically 

*Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers",  p  185,  812. 
tlbid,  p.  752. 


EXPANSION  149 

the  multiplication  of  congregations  from  the  par- 
ent congregation  at  Germantown,  he  will  discover  that 
growth  was  determined  by  physical  conditions,  both  in 
its  direction  and  in  its  extent.  In  these  early  days  trav- 
ellers and  emigrants  followed  the  line  of  least  resistance, 
the  natural  watercourses.  Such  was  the  route  that 
Becker  and  his  party  took  in  their  first  ''visitation"  in 
1722.  Subsequent  Dunker  migration  followed  the  Schuyl- 
kill River  into  Montgomery  county  and  into  Berks  coun- 
ty, to  the  head  waters  of  the  Cones  toga  River,  which  flows 
southwest  into  the  Susquehanna.  This  river  was  then 
followed  up  into  the  Cumberland  valley,  thence  the  route 
led  down  into  York  county,  and  through  Maryland,  to 
the  Virginias  and  the  Carolinas.  Another  path  of  migra- 
tion, however,  instead  of  turning  into  the  Cumberland 
Valley,  continued  up  the  Susquehanna,  to  the  Juniata, 
up  to  its  head  waters,  and  thence  by  a  short  portage  to 
the  head  waters  of  a  branch  of  the  Ohio.*  But  the  south- 
ern course  was  the  more  feasible  and  most  of  the  Dunker 
churches  before  1800  are  found  from  Germantown  to  Vir- 
ginia, with  a  few  in  the  Carolinas,  Kentucky,  Tennessee 
and  Missouri.  These  regions  were  on  -the  line  of  least 
resistance  for  emigrants  in  search  of  agricultural  lands, 
and  these  early  Dunkers  were,  for  the  most  part,  farmers,  f 
Furthermore,  the  adaptability  of  a  region  for  agriculture 

*Semple,  "American  History  and  its  Geographical  Conditions,"  p  60;  see 
Map,  p  54. 

fPenna.  Ger.  Soc.  Proceedings,  6:  321,  360.  The  first  Annual  Meeting 
of  the  Dunker  church  to  ba  held  outside  of^  Pennsylvania,  Maryland  and 
Virginia  was  in  1822,  when  it  was  held  in  Ohio.  It  was  first  held  in  Indiana 
in  1848.  That  was  the  fourth  time  it  had  been  held  outside  of  the  states  first 
named  and  the  other  three  exceptions  were  occasions  when  it  was  held  in 
Ohio.  This  shows  that  the  great  part  of  the  Dunker  membership  was  lo- 
cated in  Pennsylvania,  Maryland  and  Virginia  for  some  time  after  the 
Revolutionary  War.  See  "Classified  Minutes,"  p.  398;  Brumbaugh,  "His- 
tory of  the  Brethren,"  p.  491. 


150  THE  DUNKERS  INT  AMERICA 

had  a  decisive  effect  on  the  direction  of  their  migration. 

Thus,  these  Dunkers  spread  abroad  and  settled  in  the 
Schuylkill,  Susquehanna,  Cumberland  and  Shenandoah 
valleys,  because  they  were  well  adapted  to  the  agricul- 
tural methods  of  that  day.  Moreover,  they  looked  for 
fertile  valleys.  These  Germans  had  been  the  best  farm- 
ers of  Europe  and  when  they  sought  new  homes  the 
superior  fertility  of  the  western  and  southern  valleys 
had  an  effect  on  their  decision.  Again,  the  proximity  of 
the  Cumberland  and  Shenandoah  valleys  to  the  seaboard 
led  the  Dunkers  to  occupy  them  rather  than  the  equally 
fertile  valleys  of  western  Pennsylvania. 

Another  factor  in  the  determination  of  the  direction 
the  expansion  took  was  the  social.  Between  two  places 
equally  good  from  the  economic  standpoint,  people  choose 
that  one  where  there  is  already  a  population  like  them- 
selves socially.  This  consideration  determined  that, 
once  a  bold  spirit  had  chosen  a  region  from  other  con- 
siderations, the  rest  of  his  comrades  in  faith  chose  that 
region  rather  than  some  other,  because  of  their  conscious- 
ness of  kind. 

It  was  consciousness  of  likeness,  begetting  an  affection 
for  their  fellow  countrymen  and  co-religionists  and  a  de- 
sire to  supply  to  them  the  blessings  of  the  church,  that 
led  to  "visitation"  of  members  in  outlying  districts  and 
the  organization  of  scattered  members  into  churches. 
From  that  day  in  1772,  when  Peter  Becker  organized  the 
first  "visitation"  to  the  scattered  brethren  living  in  east- 
ern Pennsylvania,  until  in  recent  years  a  different 
policy  was  begun  with  the  establishment  of  the  Indian 
and  Persian  Missions,  respectively  by  the  Conservative 
and  the  Progressive  branches  of  the  general  body,  mission- 
ary work  has  always  been  conducted  on  the  "visitation" 
plan.     Growth  has  been  by  means  of  emigration  and  col- 


EXPANSION  151 

onizition.,  A  few  members,  for  the  sake  of  better  econom- 
ic opportunities,  have  broken  away  from  a  congregation, 
and  migrated  to  another  place,  where  land  has  been  more 
abundant  and  cheaper.  There  they  have  formed  the  nu- 
cleus of  a  new  congregation.  Hence,  Dunker  communities 
have  risen  along  the  natural  routes  of  migration.  Phila- 
delphia was  the  port  to  which  they  came  from  Germany. 
German  town  was  the  first  stop.  From  there  colonization 
moved  along  the  paths  of  communication  to  the  west  and 
south. 

However,  the  method  is  striking  only  by  reason  of  the 
fact  that  it  is  a  method  that  in  an  earlier  day  was  charac- 
teristic of  many  sects,  to  a  less  extent.  The  circum- 
stance that  it  marked  the  method  of  Dunker  expansion 
in  a  superlative  degree  and  has  continued  down  into  the 
present  is  due  to  the  fact  that  their  customs,  inherited 
from  their  German  progenitors,  social  habits,  lang- 
uage and  peculiar  beliefs  exaggerated  their  con- 
sciousness of  kind  and  postponed  their  assimilation  to 
the  social  type  of  the  place  where  they  lived. 

That  fact  is  the  chief  explanation  of  why  this  great  ex- 
pansion of  the  Dunker  population  did  not  turn  out  disas- 
trously for  the  church.  In  most  cases  such  a  vast  dissi- 
pation of  the  members  of  a  church  into  the  wilds  of  a  new 
country  would  have  meant  the  loss  of  all  these  members. 

Another  thing  that  saved  the  Dunker  church  from  that 
result  was  that  she  got  her  preachers  from  the 
ranks  and  they  still  remained  farmers  or  artizans  after 
they  became  preachers.  In  most  cases  each  little  group 
of  Dunkers  that  settled  in  a  country  had  at  least  one 
preacher  among  them.  The  multiplicity  of  ministers  in 
the  older  congregations,  creating  petty  jealousies,  natur- 
ally resulted  in  the  less  successful  minister  emigrating 
to  some  place  where  his  labors  would  suffer  less  from  the 


152  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

competition  of  abler  men  and  be  more  keenly  appreciated. 
It  often  happened,  indeed,  that  the  colonist  was  the 
preacher,  since,  until  recently,  all  Dunker  preachers  have 
been  farmers,  like  the  other  members. 

Several  circurnstancesT  promoting  the  isolation  of  the 
Dunkers,  conditioned  the  continuance  of  this  method. 

Until  recently,  the  German  language,  which  promoted 
the  consciousness  of  likeness  and  differences,  has  been 
the  language  of  the  Dunker  home.  In  some  homes  it 
still  holds  its  own,  but  English  in  the  newspaper  and  in 
the  schools  is  too  strong  a  competitor  to  be  resisted.  Not 
many  years  ago,  I  heard  a  German  sermon  in  a  Dunker 
church,  but  it  is  a  rare  thing  now. 

Like  their  language,  their  peculiar  faith,  has  set  the 
Dunkers  apart  from  their  fellowmen.  Settled  in  colonies 
or  communities,  their  faith  and  their  language  have  led 
them  to  convert  or  to  ubuy  out"  the  people  around  them, 
if  possible. 

One  further  influence,  which  has  been  effective  in 
strengthening  the  Dunker  consciousness  of  kind,  has 
been  the  printing  press.  From  the  very  beginning  of 
their  history  they  have  believed  in  the  power  of  the 
press.  Even  in  Germany  they  printed  Mack's  defence 
of  their  peculiar  doctrines.*  Christopher  Sauer  set  up 
a  press  in  Germantown,  which,  although  it  was  not 
avowedly  in  th^  interests  of  the  Dunkers  alone,  yet 
was  for  the  Germans,  and  tended  to  unite  them  in 
matters  of  common  concern.  It  also  was  used  by  Sauer 
to  promote  the  tenets  of  the  Dunker  faith.  Beissel  at 
Ephrata  set  up  a  press  for  the  propagation  of  his  views. 
There  was  a  period  in  the  early  part  of  the  last  century, 
indeed,  when  literary  activity  among  the  Dunkers  seemed 
to  wane,  but  today  they  have  a  literature  of  their  own, 

*Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers",  p.  45. 


EXPANSION  15$ 

which  they  use  effectively  to  spread  their  views  and  to 
develop  a  substantial  likemindedness.  All  these  facts, 
promoting  a  consciousness  of  kind,  have  given  to  Dunker 
expansion  a  method  that  has  attracted  the  attention  late- 
ly of  many  observers,  but  which  is  remarkable  only  be- 
cause of  its  survival  into  the  present,  its  employment  to 
the  exclusion  of  other  methods,  and  its  dependence  on 
an  isolating  environment  for  its  continuance. 

It  was  inevitable  that  this  passion  for  new  lands  and 
the  consequent  spread  of  the  Dunkers  over  so  broad  a 
territory  should  have  some  evil  results.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  this  scattering  of  the  membership,  weakened 
the  eastern  congregations  at  a  critical  time,  tore  mem- 
bers away  from  the  influence  of  the  church  and  isolated 
them  in  back- woods  communities  and  retarded  the  so- 
cialization of  the  Dunkers  for  a  long  time.  It  also  hin- 
dered their  Americanization  in  language,  education, 
manners,  dress,  beliefs  and  organization. 

1.  It  set  back  the  Americanization  of  these  Germans  in 
the  matter  of  language,  for  just  at  the  time  when  civili- 
zation was  catching  up  with  their  homes  in  the  East, 
bringing  English  schools  and  neighbors,  the  temptation 
to  sell  at  high  prices  and  go  West  where  they  could  buy 
cheaper  land  proved  overwhelming  and  again  isolated 
them  in  the  wilderness  and  prairie.  The  result  was 
that  they  were  now  separated  from  even  the  few 
educational  influences  of  their  home  in  the  East,  the 
German  school,  contact  with  their  better  educated  min- 
isters, and  Christopher  Sauer's  newspapers  and  almanacs. 

The  strong  consciousness  of  kind  and  their  isolation 
prevented  the  displacement  of  their  native  tongue  by  the 
English  for  many  y ears.  Thus,  as  recently  as  1889  the 
Eastern  District  of  Pennsylvania  was  granted  their  pe- 
tition by  Annual  Meeting  to  have  the  minutes  of  the  lat- 


154  THE  DUNKEUS  IN  AMERICA 

ter  printed  in  common  German.*  On  the  other  hand, 
both  these  influences  made  them  cling  to  their  language, 
but  the  isolation  was  just  sufficient  to  shut  them  off  from 
influences  that  would  have  kept  their  German  pure,  yet 
not  sufficient  to  prevent  borrowing  from  the  English 
about  them. 

2.  Likewise,  the  expansion  of  the  Dunkers  impeded  the 
education  of  the  children  of  such  families  as  moved  to 
the  frontier.  The  Dunkers  of  Germantown  and  Ephrata 
were  interested  in  schools  for  the  education  of  the  young. 
Christopher  Sauer  helped  to  build  the  first  school  at 
Germantown  and  was  one  of  its  trustees  for  many  years. t 
His  German  almanacs  and  newspapers  were  eagerly 
sought  by  Germans  from  Pennsylvania  to  Georgia.  But, 
it  is  significant  that  the  only  Dunker  books  printed  until 
after  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  were  publish- 
ed east  of  the  Alleghanies  and  with  but  few  exceptions  in 
or  near  the  centers  of  population,  Philadelphia  and 
Baltimore.  % 

There  is  a  great  hiatus  in  the  intellectual  development 
of  the  Dunkers  from  1784  to  1850.  The  reason  for  it  lies 
in  the  expansion  of  the  Dunkers  westward  into  the  great 
American  wilderness  and  prairie.  It  was  a  period  in 
which  all  the  energies  of  these  people  were  exhausted  in 
making  homes  for  themselves  and  in  following  the  lure  of 
economic  opportunity.  They  had  no  time  or  energy  to 
give  to  the  higher  things  of  life.  The  untamed  wilder- 
ness demanded  the  individual  attention,  not  only  of  the 
adults,  but  also  of  the  children  and  therefore  education 
fell  into  disrepute. 

*8ee  "Classified  Minutes"  of  1886-1892,  p  13,  Art.  14. 

THolsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc".,  p  267;  "Chronicon 
Ephratense",  p  216. 

tSee  Hildeburn,  "First  Issues  of  the  Pennsylvania  Press." 


EXPANSION  155 

Another  thing  to  be  remembered  is  that  they  were 
widely  scattered.  Education  is  largely  a  social  product, 
the  incentive  to  which  is  the  result  of  social  contact.  But 
contact  with  an  educated,  likeminded  people  was  lacking. 
Therefore,  imitation  of  the  better  educated  people  about 
them  could  not  occur. 

Moreover,  on  the  frontier  there  were  few  educational 
facilities.  Social  organizations  existed  only  in  spontane- 
ous forms  and  among  these  simple  forms  were  few 
schools.  The  thoughts  of  the  people  were  devoted  to 
matters  that  had  more  direct  connection  with  personal 
safety  and  means  of  subsistence.  German  schools  for 
educating  their  children  the  Dunkers  did  not  possess,  and 
had  they  possessed  them,  they  would  have  seen  no  need 
of  them  in  their  wilderness  surroundings.  The  English 
schools  were  few  and  poor.  Therefore  the  children  grew 
up  with  only  enough  education  in  either  language  to  en- 
able them  to  conduct  necessary  conversation,  and  to  read 
the  Bible  in  one  language,  generally  the  German.  This 
was  the  period  of  transition  from  Ger  man  to  English  as 
the  language  of  the  Dunkers.  The  process  of  transition 
operated  to  produce  ignorance  and  neglect  of  education. 
The  first  Dunker  book  in  English  I  know  of  was  published 
in  1833  and  the  first  Dunker  newspaper  in  English  in  1851. 
These  were  the  first  harbingers  of  the  coming  change  in 
the  language  and  culture  of  the  Dunkers.  It  was  in 
1850  that  the  first  Dunker  book  on  theology  in  English, 
Nead's  "Theology,"  was  published.  All  these  circum- 
stances exaggerated  the  Pietistic  tendencies  latent  in 
Dunker  circles  against  education. 

3.  Isolated  in  German  settlements  on  the  frontiers 
these  sturdy  Germans  clung  to  their  ancestral  customs 
and  manners.  Their  ancestors  had  been  common  peasant 
people  with  the   manners  and   customs    of  that    class. 


156  THE  DUNKES  IN  AMERICA 

Their  situation  in  scattered  communities  in  the  West 
perpetuated  these  peculiarities  and  helped  to  retard 
the  change  to  American  habits.  The  fact  that  these 
frontier  congregations  were  too  remote  from  the  main 
body  of  the  church  to  share  in  the  development  for  long 
periods  explains  many  of  the  divergencies  of  practice  in 
the  church.  For  example,  the  two  modes  of  Feet  Washing, 
discussion  over  which  subject  threatened  to  disrupt  the 
church  at  one  time  and  gave  occasion  for  grave  discussion 
and  legislation  by  many  Annual  Meetings,  originated  in  the 
early  period  of  Dunker  expansion,  before  the  constitution 
and  practices  of  the  church  had  been  developed  very  far. 
Moreover,  this  period  of  Dunker  history  gave  rise  to  the 
variety  of  Dunkers  known  as  the  Far  Western  Brethren 
of  Kentucky  and  Illinois.  They  were  simply  a  local  vari- 
ety of  Dunkers  that  had  not  shared  in  the  general  develop- 
ment of  the  main  body  but  had  undergone  a  development 
of  their  own.*  To  this  period  also  can  be  traced  the 
different  customs  observed  in  the  eating  of  the  Lord's 
Supper.  Some  held  that  the  only  kind  of  meat  used  in 
the  supper  should  be  lamb's  flesh. 

4.  Taught  to  believe  that  plainness  of  dress  was  a  sign 
of  godliness,  they  had  every  reason  to  continue  so  to  be- 
lieve in  their  backwoods'  life  in  the  settlements  scattered 
far  from  the  centers  of  culture  and  refinement.  Hence, 
their  enviroment  again  retarded  the  civilizing  influences 
of  dress. 

5.  In  like  manner,  their  isolation  from  other  elements 
of  the  social  population  was  complete  enough  to  preserve 
intact  their  beliefs  and  practices.  In  doctrine  this 
was  a  period  of  stagnation.  The  traditions  of  the 
fathers  was  the  test  of    orthodoxy.      The    passion    for 

*Por  details  in  regard  to  this  movement  see  Holsinger,  "History  of  the 
Tunkers",  p  762. 


EXPANSION  157 

social    unity  also  operated  in  favor    of    this  tendency. 

6.  The  spread  of  the  D linkers  had  a  similar  effect  on 
their  social  organization.  Development  in  this  line  took 
place  in  the  East  first  and  then  gradually  enveloped  the 
churches  on  the  outskirts.  Had  the  Dunkers  confined 
themselves  to  Pennsylvania  there  is  no  doubt  that  the 
completion  of  their  social  constitution  would  have  come 
much  sooner  than  it  did,  and  doubtless  would  have  been 
somwhat  different.  The  frontier  congregations  carried 
with  them  the  ideal  of  the  simple  organization  with  which 
they  were  familiar. 

However,  the  development  of  the  constitution  of  the 
church  was  going  on  rapidly  in  the  regions  where  the 
congregations  were  close  enough  together  for  frequent 
contact  with  one  another.  As  soon  as  two  or  more  con- 
gregations began  to  have  relations  with  each  other  the 
evolution  of  the  constitution  of  the  Dunker  church  began. 

At  first  it  was  spontaneous  and  sporadic,  e.  g.,  the  visit 
of  one  congregation  by  members  from  another.  That 
was  its  beginning.  Hence,  the  beginning  of  the  develop- 
ment goes  back  to  the  first  ''visitation"  made  by  Peter 
Becker  and  his  fellows  from  Germantown  to  their  unor- 
ganized companions  in  faith  at  Coventry  and  Conestoga 
in  1723. 

The  organization  of  a  definite  inter-congregational  as- 
sembly, however,  did  not  occur  until  1742.  Then,  it  arose 
specifically  as  an  instrument  of  protection  of  the  Dunker 
congregations  from  what  their  leaders  felt  was  a  snare 
set  for  them  in  the  Synods  of  Count  Zinzendorf,  who  had 
come  to  Pennsylvania  to  quiet  the  strife  between  the  va- 
rious sects  thereby  organizing  them  all  into  a  "church  of 
God  in  the  Spirit",  wherein  each  should  be  allowed  per- 
fect liberty  to  believe  and  practice  what  he  wished,  but 
in  which- each  sect  should  respect  the  beliefs  of  the  oth- 


158  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

ers,  and  cease  their  quarreling  over  theological  and  eccle- 
siastical differences.  After  the  third  Synod  the  Dunker 
representative  from  Coventry,  George  Adam  Martin, 
went  back  to  his  congregation  and  reported  to  his  elder, 
Martin  Urner,  that  he  thought  the  Count's  Synods  were 
for  the  purpose  of  enticing  people  back  to  infant  baptism 
and  the  "Babylon"  of  the  established  churches.  Togeth- 
er they  decided  to  "get  ahead  of  the  danger,  as  some 
Baptists  (Dunkers)  had  already  been  smitten  with  this 
vain  doctrine,  and  to  hold  a  yearly  conference,  or  as  we 
called  it,  a  Great  Assembly  (Grosse  Versammelung),  and 
at  once  fixed  the  time  and  place."*  This  was  the  begin- 
ning of  the  first  inter -congregational  "Big  Meeting"  of 
the  Dunkers,  out  of  which  has  grown  the  Annual  Meet- 
ing, the  organization  that  governs  the  Dunker  church, 
in  all  matters  of  doctrine  and  practice,  f  Adoption  of  it 
is  an  instance  of  the  process  of  conflict  by  imitation. 
Its  ultimate  cause  was  consciousness  of  kind. 

Before  1778,  or,  possibly  1791,  these  "Big  Meetings", 
as  they  were  always  called  before  1832,  did  not  meet  reg- 
ularly year  by  year.  %  At  first  these  meetings  were  sim- 
ply for  conference  and  devotion.  There  was  always  held 
in  connection  with  them  a  Love  Feast,  and  the  settlement 
of  difficulties  was  only  a  minor  matter.  They  were  not 
meetings  in  which  legislation  binding  upon  all  the  con- 
gregations was  passed.  That  conception  of  them  came 
only  with  the  lapse  of  time.  At  first,  they  were  simply 
advisory.  Many  times  they  met  without  having  to  settle 
any  difficulties* at  all.     In  such  cases  they  were  devoted 

*See  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  245. 

fFor  a  very  good  chapter  on  the  origin  of  Annual  Meeting  see  Brum- 
baugh, "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  471  f. 

JHowever,  George  Adam  Martin  seems  to  imply  that  in  1757  already  they 
were  held  annually.  See  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  245.  Cf.  Holsinger, 
"History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc.",  p  809;  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Breth- 
ren", p  490. 


EXPANSION  159 

entirely  to  preaching  and  devotions.  Thus,  before  1830 
the  minutes  of  these  mettings  are  incomplete.  None  are 
known  to  exist  from  the  period  before  1778.  In  1859  the 
first  committee,  the  names  of  whose  members  have  been 
preserved  was  sent  by  Annual  Meeting  to  a  local  church 
to  settle  difficulties.  The  first  Standing  Committee  of 
Annual  Meeting  whose  names  have  come  down  to  us  was 
that  of  1785.*  It  was  not  until  1882  that  the  constitution 
was  so  far  developed  that  the  decisions  of  Annual  Meet- 
tings  were  declared  to  be  mandatory,  i.  e.  binding  on  the 
local  churches.  Until  1868  the  constitution  of  the  Stand- 
ing Committee,  the  very  centre  of  the  whole  organization, 
remained  practically  on  the  same  basis  that  it  had  when 
'the  D ankers  borrowed  it  from  the  Zinzendorf  Synods. 
Its  members  were  elected,  not  as  since  then,  by  the  dis- 
tricts, but  by  the  local  congregation  where  the  Meeting 
was  held.  Even  to  this  day  the  method  of  getting 
queries  to  the  Annual  Meeting  is  based  upon  the  method 
that  was  invented  and  used  in  the  Zinzendorf  Synods,  viz., 
through  the  Standing  Committee,  not  through  individ- 
uals, t 

Why  did  the  Dunker  organization  develop  so  slowly? 
The  reason,  I  think,  will  be  found  in  the  scattering  of  the 
Dunker  forces  in  their  expansion  over  the  new  lands  of 
the  United  States.  The  development  of  the  social  con- 
stitution of  any  people  is  dependent  upon  close  and  fre- 
quent contact.  The  depletion  of  the  congregations  in  the 
more  thickly  settled  communities  through  emigration  of 
the  members  to  new  communities  hindered  the  develop- 
ment in  the  former,  while  the  development  in  the  latter 
had  to  wait  on  growth  of  population,  and  of  means  of  com- 
munication and  association. 

*< 'Classified  Minutes",  p  382,  38». 

tSee  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  479. 


160  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

In  all  these  ways  the  effect  of  the  spread  of  the  Dunk- 
ers  was  to  retard  their  socialization.  While  in  the  end  it 
resulted  well  for  the  church,  for  the  time  being  it  impe- 
ded her  progress  and  brought  about  the  conditions  that 
made  inevitable  all  her  trouble.*  From  one  point  of  view, 
this  period  might  fitly  be  called  the  period  of  stagnation 
of  the  Dunker  church.  From  another  point  of  view,  this 
was  the  time  of  her  preparation  to  take  her  place  among 
the  useful  Christian  denominations  of  America.  Expan- 
sion impeded  the  evolution  of  the  Dunker  church,  but  it 
made  possible  greater  things  when  the  process  of  social- 
ization once  began. 

Thus,  in  culture,  doctrine,  customs  and  organization 
the  expansion  of  the  Dunker s  impeded  progress. 

*See  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren,"  p  528  f. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


The  Unification  op  the  Dunkers  after  their  Ex- 
pansion in  America. 

The  term  "unification",  as  used  in  this  chapter,  signi- 
fies the  process  by  which  the  Dunkers  developed  into  a 
voluntary,  cultural  society,  with  a  common  culture,  com- 
mon beliefs,  common  purposes,  and  a  unified  organiza- 
tion to  which  the  members  gave  loyal  adherence.  This  is 
a  part  of  the  process  of  socialization,  of  which  the  other 
part  is  liberalization,  to  be  treated  in  the  next  chapter. 

In  explaining  the  origin  of  the  sect  in  Europe  in  Part 
I,  the  early  steps  in  that  process  have  already  been  no- 
ticed. Some  of  these  steps  were  repeated  here  in  Amer- 
ica, but  many  of  them  were  not.  The  aim  of  this  chapter 
is  to  show  how  the  Dunker  church  developed  from  a  peo- 
ple who  were  held  together  rather  loosely  by  a  feeling  of 
likeness  to  each  other  and  by  an  antipathy  to  those  differ- 
ent from  themselves,  and  who  existed  in  scattered  con- 
gregations here  and  there  throughout  the  various  sec- 
tions of  America,  into  a  closely  united  organization  with 
a  well  developed  social  constitution,  a  well  defined  body  of 
beliefs,  and  customs,  and  a  membership  very  much  alike 
in  feelings,  thoughts  and  purposes.  In  order  to  do  so, 
it  will  be  well  to  summarize  briefly  the  stage  of  social 
development  reached  by  the  Dunkers  before  their  expan- 
sion in  America. 

The  spread  of  the  Dunkers  over  what  is  now  the  Unit- 
ed States  resulted  in  arresting  the  process  of  socialization 
that  had  begun  before  their  expansion  had  really  com- 
menced. 

While  the  spread  of  the  Dunkers  had  been  going  on 
from  their  first  arrival  in  America,  it  did  not  assume  such 


162  TEE  D  UNEERS  IN  AMERICA 

proportions  as  seriously  to  interfere  with  their  natural 
social  development  until  the  great  movement  to  the  West, 
subsequent  to  the  Revolutionary  War,  began.  Their  ex- 
pansion previous  to  that  time  had  been  largely  to  the 
South,  in  bo  the  Valley  of  Virginia  and  adjacent  valleys  so 
that  communication  between  the  congregations  was  pos- 
sible. When,  however,  the  great  outpouring  of  people  to 
the  cheap  and  fertile  lands  west  of  the  Alleghanies  com- 
menced, intercommunication  was  not  possible  on  the  same 
scale  as  formerly,  until,  after  the  lapse  of  a  considerable 
time,  railroads  and  post  Jines  were  opened  up  from  the 
East  into  these  regions.  Accordingly  the  social  develop- 
ment in  the  East  was  retarded  and  in  the  West  it  was 
stopped  entirely  for  a  time. 

The  Dunker  population  in  America  in  1790  was  not 
more  than  1463  persons.*  These  were  scattered  in  thirty- 
three  congregations,  from  Germantown,  Pennsylvania 
to  South  Carolina. 

After  the  first  few  years,  the  growth  of  the  Dunker 
population  wais  by  natural  increase.  At  first,  and  to  a 
small  degree  always,  the  increase  of  membership  came 
from  the  German  settlers  near  them,  who  had  no  church 
of  their  own  confession  in  the  immediate  neighborhood,  t 
Therefore,  the  growth  of  the  membership  was  slow,  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  Dunker  families  were  large.  An- 
other thing  that  worked  in  the  same  direction  was  that 
during  this  period  of  expansion,  in  fact,  since  the  Dunk- 
ers  had  broken  with  the  followers  of  Beissel,  they  had 
had  a  prejudice  against  revivals.  And,  again,  their  ab- 
sorption in  the  task  of  making  homes  on  the  frontiers 
tended  to  draw  their  interest  away  from  an  increase  of 
membership.  The  result  was  that,  when  the  great  ex- 
pansion began  at  the  close  of  the  Revolution,  the  Dunker 

*See  Chapters  III  and  VI. 

fHolsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc.,"  p  475. 


UNIFICATION  16S 

membership  was  just  sufficient  in  its  ratio  to  the  other 
elements  of  the  population  to  start  their  social  develop- 
ment. 

The  Dunkers  had  gone  through  the  steps  in  the  devel- 
opment of  the  social  mind  that  are  known  as  like  response 
to  the  same  stimulus,  attainment  of  mental  and  practical 
resemblance,  consciousness  of  kind  and  concerted  pur- 
poses of  a  sort,  before  they  had  left  Europe.  Their  soc- 
ial experiences  in  America,  up  to  the  period  of  expansion, 
had  brought  them  only  a  little  beyond  the  point  of  de- 
velopment reached  in  Europe.  Communication  between 
the  various  congregations  of  Dunkers  close  together,  as- 
sociation in  occasional  Love  Feasts,  and  co-operation  in  the 
"Big  Meetings",  at  which  people  were  often  in  at- 
tendance from  far  distant  congregations  for  the  Love 
Feast,  or,  for  the  settlement  of  some  trouble,  or 
the  decision  of  some  question  that  had  risen  in  that 
local  church,  helped  to  develop  a  reciprocal  recognition 
of  likeness  that  was  beyond  the  point  hitherto  reached 
in  the  development  of  the  social  mind. 

As  for  the  social  organization,  at  this  time  it  had  also 
progressed  a  step  beyond  the  development  reached  by  the 
organization  in  Europe.  This  advance  is  evidenced  by 
the  adoption  of  a  conference  to  meet  annually,  in  imita- 
tion of  Zinzendorf's  Synods,  in  order  to  defend  the 
Dunkers  against  the  danger  of  being  seduced  from  their 
peculiar  doctrines  and  strict  sectarianism.  The  con- 
ference they  adopted  was  a  purposive  association  that 
had  for  its  aim  the  preservation  of  Dunker  doctrines  and 
ideals.  It  resulted  in  a  further  development  of  Dunker 
organization.  Furthermore,  it  fitted  admirably  into  the 
custom,  that  had  risen  of  visiting  neighboring  congrega- 
tions and  holding  Love  Feasts,  which  custom  had  originated 
spontaneously  in  the    earliest  days  of  their  history  in 


164  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

America  in  the  desire  of  Becker  and  his  fellows  to  gather 
together  the  scattered  Dunkers  into  an  organization.* 
However,  at  the  time  of  which  we  now  speak,  this  devel- 
opment of  the  organization  had  not  proceeded  far  beyond 
that  half-purposive,  half- spontaneous  stage,  just  noticed, 
which  existed  as  early  as  1742.  Thus,  the  character  of 
the  decision  of  the  first  Annual  Meeting,  whose  decisions 
have  reached  us,  was  that  of  advice  in  regard  to  a 
local  case.  The  meeting  was  still  called  a  "council" 
and  the  decision  a  "counsel,  "t  The  ideal  of  unity 
however,  was  just  beginning  to  take  shape,  which 
ideal  is  always  prerequisite  to  the  development  of 
organization.  X 

As  soon  as  the  churches  in  the  older  East  had  recovered 
from  the  effects  of  the  dispersion,  and  other  social 
elements  began  to  crowd  in  upon  the  Dunkers,  social 
development  began  again.  As  always,  it  began  with  a 
change  in  the  conditions  of  the  population. 

1.  The  conditions  of  social  development  lie  in  the  popu- 
lation. Its  density,  and  its  homogeneity  or  heterogeneity 
determine  whether  the  society  shall  be  a  developing 
or  a  stagnant  one.  The  families  were  large  and  were 
brought  up  in  the  church.  Consequently,  the  Dunk- 
er  population  tended  to  be  homogeneous.  One  thing 
however,  worked  against  this  tendency.  The  con- 
gregations were  scattered  over  so  wide  an  expanse 
of  country  and  the  means  of  communication  were  sc 
meagre,   that  variations  in  social  type  arose.     Thus,  in 

•See  Chapter  II,  Part  II. 

-{•"Classified  Minutes",  p  206,  216,  247,  282,  347,  350. 

J1 'Classified  Minutes",  p  269,  278,  353,  etc.,  "It  has  been  concluded  in 
union".  "We  have  considered  and  weighed  the  matter  in  union."  "For 
the  Spirit  ef  God  leads  into  all  truth  and  union1'. 


UNIFICATION  165 

the  years  following  their  spread  there  arose  local  varie- 
ties of  Dunkers,  such  as  "the  South  Carolina  brethren," 
"the  Thurmanites, "  "the  John  A.  Bowman  Church"  and 
"the  Far  Western  Brethren."*  The  homogeneous  mem- 
bership resulting  from  growth  of  membership  by  natural 
increase  accounts  for  the  predominant  passion  for  unity 
characteristic  of  this  period.  On  the  other  hand,  the  var- 
iations gave  that  measure  of  heterogeneity  that  demanded 
measures  of  coercion  towards  the  individual.  These  facts 
provided  conditions  of  progress. 

Furthermore,  the  growth  of  population  about  them  had 
an  influence  upon  their  social  progress.  It  provided  the 
unlike  social  element  that  developed  consciousness  of 
kind  and  gave  rise  to  conflict  of  opinion,  that  drove  the 
Dunkers  to  the  defence  of  their  doctrines  and  customs 
and  to  the  perfecting  of  their  local  congregational  organ- 
izations, f 

2.  The  development  of  the  social  mind  of  the  Dunkers, 
in  the  period  following  their  expansion,  was  chiefly  in  the 
matter  of  concerted  volition. 

For  some  time  after  the  scattering  of  the  membership, 
the  consciousness  of  kind  already  developed  in  Europe 
and  America,  while  perhaps  just  as  strong  in  the  local 
congregation,  had  no  chance  to  grow  in  the  larger  circle 
of  brethren  scattered  over  the  larger  territory.  Soon, 
however,  letters  began  to  be  sent  back  and  forth  and  vis- 
its were  made  between  churches  situated  along  natural 
routes  of  travel.  On  occasion,  when  it  became  known 
that  a  "big  meeting"  was  to  be  held  at  a  certain  church 
for  the  settlement  of  a  difficulty  or  for  the  purpose  of 
discussing  a  question  of  interest,  or  even  simply  to  hold 
a  love  feast,    those  that  were  near  enough  attended. 

*See  "Classified  Minutes,"  p  135,  341,  345,  356. 

fThere  are  no  statistics  of  Dunker  population  from  this  period. 


166  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

Here  through  social  intercourse  and,  by  means  of  conflict, 
toleration  and  imitation,  the  consciousness  of  kind  was 
strengthened  and  concerted  action  was  taken  in  various 
matters.  Thus,  in  the  first  Annual  Meeting  whose  min- 
utes we  have  preserved,  "After  much  reflection,  in  the 
fear  of  the  Lord  it  has  been  concluded  in  union  that  the 
brethren  who  have  taken  the  attest  should  recall  it  before 
a  justice,  and  give  up  their  certificate,  and  recall,  and 
apologize  in  their  churches  and  truly  repent  for  their  er- 
ror, etc."*  Many  more  examples  might  be  given  of  the 
same  tendency  to  develop  concerted  action  on  the  part  of 
those  congregations  so  situated  that  they  could  get  to- 
gether. Then,  as  connection  with  the  congregations 
scattered  throughout  the  West  was  established,  this  same 
process  was  repeated.  However,  the  greater  social  de- 
velopment of  the  region  east  of  the  Alleghanies,  as  well 
as  the  greater  number  of  Dunker  congregations  there, 
determined  that  the  social  development  of  the  Dunkers 
should  proceed  most  rapidly  there.  Consequently,  it  was 
in  that  section  that  concerted  volition  developed  first 
among  the  Dunker  congregations, 

The  mode  of  likemindedness  found  among  the  Dunkers 
of  this  period  of  socialization  was  formal,  or  dogmatic.  In 
this  likemindedness  there  were  two  factors, -belief  and 
deductive  reasoning,  f  The  Dunkers  had  received  as  tra- 
ditions certain  dogmatic  doctrines  and  certain  church 
rites,  or  customs.  They  defended  them  by  a  process  of 
deductive  reasoning,  as  did  all  the  other  churches  of  the 
time.  What  these  were  has  been  noticed  in  Chapter  II, 
Part  I. 

Now,  the  effect  of  the  spread  of  the  Dunkers  upon  these 
beliefs  was,  (1)  that  their  rationalization  was   postponed, 

*<(Clas8ified  Minutes",  p  269. 

tSee  Giddings'  "Inductive  Sociology,"  p  145  f. 


UNIFICATION  167 

and  (2)  that  opportunity  was  given  for  differences  of  be- 
lief and  custom  to  arise.  The  result  was  that  the  like- 
mindedness  could  not  develop  into  the  next  higher  stage, 
the  deliberative.  Therefore,  when  about  1850  conditions 
became  such  that  the  long  separated  congregations  could 
communicate  and  associate  together,  they  became  con- 
scious of  the  fact  that,  while  they  all  agreed  as  to  their 
mode  of  concerted  volition,  they  found  in  different  con- 
gregations, in  widely  separated  parts  of  the  country  dif- 
ferent beliefs  in  existence.  They  had  no  sooner  discov- 
ered this  fact,  however,  than  there  arose  in  their  minds 
the  ideal  of  uniformity  of  belief  and  practice.  It  was 
such  an  ideal  that  led  to  the  great  development  in  organ- 
ization that  took  place  in  this  period,  which  organization 
was  the  machinery  by  which  uniformity  was  to  be  real- 
ized. Moreover,  this  passion  for  unity  accounts  for  the 
developments  that  occurred  in  the  doctrines  of  the 
Church.  For  example,  the  article  of  belief  as  to  dress  was 
indefinite.  All  that  was  demanded  was  that  it  should  be 
plain.  In  defining,  at  a  later  time,  what  plainness  meant, 
however,  uniform  garbs  were  finally  adopted  for  the 
women  and  officers  of  the  church,  and  a  uniform  way  of 
wearing  the  beard  and  combing  the  hair  was  prescribed 
forthe  male  members.  Their  morality  was  made  uniform 
negatively,  i.  e.  all  members  were  to  refrain  from  certain 
actions,  such  as  making  or  selling  intoxicants  or  tobacco, 
keeping  slaves,  wearing  gold,  attending  certain  amuse- 
ments, etc. ,  through  the  whole  catalogue  of  negative,  Pur- 
itanical virtues.  To  break  the  uniform  rule  of  morality 
came  to  be  punishable  by  exclusion  from  the  Church. 
The  Minutes  of  Annual  Meeting  at  first  were  considered 
merely  as  advice  or  counsel,  but  after  the  social  develop- 
ment had  gone  far  enough  a  policy  of  coercion  was  adopt- 
ed and  the  decisions  became  mandatory,  and  acceptance 


168  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

of  them  a  test  of  fellowship.*  The  later  position  was  im- 
possible in  the  early  days,  because  the  means  of  commu- 
nicating traditions  and  traditional  usages  were  imper- 
fect, but  with  the  growth  of  railroads,  travel  was  facili- 
tated and  it  became  possible  to  have  every  congregation 
of  the  church  represented  at  the  Annual  Meeting. 

Before  the  rise  of  the  church  papers  the  Dunkers  felt  the 
necessity  of  devising  the  plan  whereby  the  decisions  of  An- 
nual Meeting  might  be  disseminated.  They  therefore 
proposed  to  create  a  committee  of  "several  brethren  that 
are  experienced  and  sound  in  the  faith,  and  send  them,  two 
and  two,  with  the  decisions  of  the  Annual  Meeting,  and 
let  them  visit  all  the  congregations  in  the  United  States, 
and  establish  them  all  in  the  same  order  according  to 
example  (Actsl5)".t  Although  this  plan  was  not  adopted 
it  reveals  the  consciousness  that  some  plan  must  be 
found  to  make  the  church  one  in  doctrine  and  practice. 
About  1851  the  "Gospel  Visitor",  the  first  Dunker  news- 
paper since  the  days  of  Christopher  Sauer,  was  origin- 
ated.:): This  and  other  papers,  which  soon  arose  in  the 
church,  provided  a  means  for  the  easy  communication  of 
the  ideals  held  by  the  majority  of  the  members,  and 
developed  the  formal  likemindedness  that  had  character- 
ized the  Dunkers  throughout  their  history.  The  appeal 
to  tradition  was  made  in  the  earliest  minutes  of  Annual 
Meeting  that  have  reached  us,  and  had  been  made  even 
before  this,  according  to  George  Adam  Martin.**    It  grew 

*Cf.  the  decisions  of  1805,  1848,  1865,  1882  in  "Classified  Minutes,"  p28,  31 
fArt.  8,  1849,  ''Classified  Minutes",  p  28. 

JHolsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc.,"  p351f;  "Classified  Minutes", 
p  323  f . 

**See  "Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  245,  "Always  appealing  to  their  prede 
cessors,  saying  the  old  Brethren  in  Germany  did  so  and  we  must  not  depart 
from  their  ways". 


UNIFICATION  169 

ever  more  insistent  as  the  years  went  on  and  as  the 
means  of  communication  improved.  Thus,  the  two 
instruments  whereby  the  dogmatic  likemindedness  was 
cultivated  were  the  Annual  Meeting  and,  of  less  impor- 
tance in  this  period,  the  church  papers. 

3.  The  most  important  development  in  the  Dunker 
church  in  this  period  was  that  of  the  social  organization. 
While  the  growth  of  population  and  the  development  of 
the  social  mind  were  necessary  conditions  of  the  develop- 
ment of  the  organization,  it  is  undoubtedly  true  that  the 
latter  had  a  most  important  reciprocal  effect  upon  both 
the  former.  So  complex  are  the  processes  by  which  a 
society  grows  that  now  one  is  cause  and  the  other  effect, 
and  now  the  relation  of  the  two  are  reversed. 

Before  1742  there  was  no  organized  or  regular  relations 
between  the  various  Dunker  congregatioDS.  There  were 
only  occasional  visits  back  and  forth.  From  that  time 
there  was  an  annual  gathering  called  by  the  Dunker s  at 
that  time  and  for  many  years  to  come  "a  great  assembly" 
(eine  grosse  Versammelung.)*  Up  to  this  time  the  local 
congregation  was  the  church.  Development  had  not  gone 
far  enough  to  demand  a  further  organization.  But  with 
the  growth  of  numbers  and  population  it  was  inevitable 
that  the  Dunkers  must  determine  the  organ  for  the  reali- 
zation of  the  higher  unity  that  was  beginning  to  assume 
prominence  in  the  social  mind. 

There  were  three  spheres  in  which  the  development  of 
their  social  organization  proceeded,  the  local  congrega- 
tion, District  Meeting  and  the  Annual  Meeting. 

The  local  congregations'  development  consisted  chiefly 

in  the  changes  that  occurred   in  the  ministry.     On   the 

basis  of   the  self-governing  local  church  that  existed 

among  them  in  Germany,  with  preachers  chosen  from 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense",  p  245. 


170  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

their  own  ranks,  there  gradually  evolved  the  three  de- 
grees of  the  regular  ministry  and  the  diaconate. 

In  the  Minutes  of  1856,  Art.  20,  is  found  the  first  refer- 
ence to  what  was  called  the  first  degree  in  the  ministry. 
The  article  runs  thus,  "Is  it  the  rule  and  order  among 
the  Brethren  to  forward  a  brother  to  baptize  at  the 
same  time  he  is  put  in  the  ministry?  Ans. — No."  This 
shows  that  it  had  become  the  custom  to  make  a  dis- 
tinction between  the  duties  of  ministers  who  had  been 
for  a  longer  or  shorter  time  respectively  in  office.*  In 
1864  the  question  first  came  clearly  before  Annual  Meet- 
ing, "What  authority  have  we  in  the  New  Testament 
for  three  orders  or  grades  in  the  ministry"?  This  ques- 
tion was  deferred  for  answer  to  the  next  Meeting  with 
the  recommendation  that  "the  Brethren  examine  the 
Scriptures  upon  the  subject."  It  was  answered  thus, 
"We  have  plain  Scripture  to  teach  a  grade  of  offices  in 
the  church.  (See  Eph.  iv,  11):  'He  gave  some,  apostles; 
some,  prophets;  some,  evangelists ; and  some,  pastors  and 
teachers'  ".  Thus,  the  development  in  the  office  of  the 
ministry  that  had  been  going  on  since  a  very  early  period 
of  their  history  in  America,  came  to  official  completion  by 
this  decision  of  the  Annual  Meeting.  The  duties  of  the 
first  degree  ministry  were  set  forth  in  the  form  of  instal- 
lation prescribed  by  the  Annual  Meeting  of  1874,  Art.  8. 
According  to  this  his  duties  are  not  onerous,  t 

*This  practice  probably  grew  out  of  the  earlier  practice  in  Pennsylvania 
of  outting  a  man  into  the  ministry  on  trial. — Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the 
Brethren",  p  391. 

fHe  is  authorized  "to  exhort  and  to  preach  as  an  assistant  to  the  elder  and 
older  ministers,  as  they  may  give  him  liberty  to  do  so.  It  is  his  duty,  how- 
ever, faithfully  to  attend  the  meetings  of  the  Ohurch,  and,  when  liberty  is 
given,  to  exhort  or  preach,  and  do  it  humbly,  and  willingly,  and  faithfully,  as 
the  Lord  will  afford  him  grace  to  do."  In  case  none  of  the  older  ministers 
should  come  to  the  appointment,  it  is  his  duty  to  proceed  with  the  service 
according  to  the  usual  order  of  the  Brethren  to  thebest  of  his  ability,  but 


UNIFICATION  171 

In  the  same  year  a  form  of  installation  was  formulated 
for  the  second  degree  ministry  also.  The  duties  of  this 
office  are  more  important.* 

The  form  for  the  ordination  of  an  elder,  as  the  third 
and  highest  degree  in  the  ministry  was  called,  was  not 
adopted  by  the  Annua]  Meeting  until  1877.  His  duties 
are  carefully  denned  and  are  very  important. t 

he  cannot  make  any  appointments  for  service  on  his  own  account.  He  can, 
however,  preach  funerals  without  the  consent  of  the  older  ministers.  He 
must  dress  according  to  the  custom  of  the  church  and  adhere  to  the  gen- 
eral order  of  the  brotherhood  in  all  matters  of  '  nonconformity  to  the 
world.  He  cannot  baptize  or  officiate  at  the  Lord's  Supper  except  with 
the  consent  of  the  older  ministers. — "Classified  Minutes",  p  103,  104. 

*He  was  authorized  by  the  Church  "to  appoint  meetings  for  preaching, 
according  to  the  general  order  of  the  Brethren,  to  administer  the  ordi- 
nance of  Baptism,  and,  in  the  absance  of  an  elder,  to  take  the  counsel  of 
the  church  on  the  admission  of  a  candidate  for  baptism,  to  serve  the  com- 
munion in  the  absence  of  any  elder,  or,  at  his  or  their  request,  if  present; 
to  solemnize  the  right  of  marriage  according  to  the  laws  of  the  State 
and  the  usages  of  the  Church.  In  brief,  to  perform  all  the  duties  of  an 
ordained  elder,  except  that  you  have  no  authority  to  install  officers  in  the 
Church,  neither  by  giving  a  charge,  as  l  am  now  doing,  nor  by  laying  on 
hands  in  ordaining  a  brother  into  the  full  degree  of  the  ministry.  You 
have  also  no -authority  to  preside  in  the  council- meetings  of  the  -church  in 
which  official  members  of  the  church  are  to  be  dealt  with.  You  have  no 
authority  to  go  into  the  acknowledged -territory  of  any  organized  church 
to  make  appointments  for  preaching  unless  called  by  the  elder  or  council 
of  said  church."  Furthermore,  he  must  submit  himself  to  his  elder  and 
be  amenable  to  the  church,  in  all  things. — "Classified  Minutes",  p  107. 

t"In  ordaining  you  an  elder,  the  church  gives  you  all  the  right  and  au- 
thority belonging  to  the  ministry,  such  as  presiding  in  council-meetings 
in  which  official  members  are  tried,  at  home  or  abroad ;  if  you  are  called  to 
do  so,  in  District  or  Annual  Meetings ;  to  give  the  charge  to  deacons,  or 
ministers,  and  install  them  into  their  respective  offices."  It  was  his  duty, 
furthermore,  to  be  subject  to  the  elders,  or  bishops,  older  than  himself,  to 
manifest  no  arbitrary,  self-willed  or  domineering  spirit,  to  counsel  with 
the  official  brethren  and  with  the  church  before  doing  anything  of  impor- 
tance, to  faithfully  preach  the  Word,  care  for  the  wantsjof  the  membership, 
be  an  example  in  word  and  life  to  all  the  church  and  to  be  subject  to  the 
order  of  the  general  brotherhood  in  faith  and  practice,  in  all  things,  as 
defined  by  Annual  Meeting.— "Classified  Minutes",  p  110,  111. 


172  THE  D  TINKERS  IN  AMERICA 

The  office  of  deacon  or  " visiting  brother",  as  he  was 
described  in  1835,  is  mentioned  and  his  duties  defined  by 
the  Annual  meeting  in  that  year,  Art.  15.  He  was  care- 
fully subordinated  to  the  ministry  as  a  kind  of  or  do  minor* 

Both  ministers  and  deacons  were  limited  in  their  ac- 
tivity by  their  subordination  to  the  church,  the  fountain 
of  authority.  Both  classes  were  elected  by  the  church 
and  could  be  relieved  of  their  offices  by  the  church.  Only 
the  minister  of  the  third  degree,  the  elder,  was  ordained 
by  the  laying  on  of  hands  and  prayer.  In  the  course  of 
the  development  there  was  great  pressure  brought  to 

*His  duties  are  (1)  to  assist  the  ministers  in  making  the  annual  visit  to 
each  member  of  the  church  to  see  whether  he  is  in  love  and  fellowship 
with  all  the  members,  or  in  case  of  division  of  the  field  for  the  purpose  of 
that  visit,  or,  in  case  the  ministers  are  sick,  he  is  to  take  the  initiative  in 
the  visit  in  connection  with  whatever  other  brethren  are  deemed  necessary; 
(2)  to  accompany  the  ministers  to  the  investigation  of  any  trouble  in  the 
church,  or,  provided  it  is  not  of  special  importance,  to  investigate  it  him- 
self, when  so  required  by  the  ministry  of  the  ehurch;  (3)  to  oversee  the 
poor  of  the  church,  visit  the  sick,  to  distribute  money  or  grain  to  the  needy 
and  to  keep  a  strict  accounl  of  his  receipts  and  expenditures  on  this  ac- 
count; (4)  to  bring  anything  he  may  hear  of  that  demands  attention  to  the 
notice  of  the  ministry;  (5)  to  assist  ministers  in  the  public  worship  by 
reading  the  Scripture  and  praying,  and,  in  case  no  minister  is  present,  to 
conduct  the  service,  and  to  accompany  a  minister,  if  the  latter  requests  it, 
to  another  district  to  hold  meetings;  and  (6)  to  serve  the  tables  at  the  Love 
Feasts,  making  all  the  necessary  preparations  for  such  occasions.  In  1836, 
when  this  elaborate  definition  of  duties  was  officially  sanctioned  the  fifth 
(5)  kind  of  duties  was  limited  by  the  caveat  that  "it  was  the  counsel  of  the 
old  brethren  that  it  is  not  their  (the  deacons')  calling  to  rise  to  their  feet 
in  order  to  exhort".  That  is,  it  was  thought  best  to  confine  their  functions 
at  public  service,  in  the  absence  of  a  minister,  to  the  conduct  of  the  service, 
exclusive  of  the  preaching,  but  if  they  did  speak,  they  should  do  so  sit- 
ting.— '  'Classified  Minutes",  p  95  f .  In  1811  and  1843  he  was  further  limit- 
ed in  this  respect  and  in  1846  it  was  decided  that  a  deaeon  has  no  right  to 
appoint  a  meeting  and  preach,  unless  authorized  by  the  church,  but  should 
confine  himself  to  the  duties  for  which  he  has  been  chosen.  In  1871  it  was 
deoided  that,  when  deacons  spoke  at  all  in  meeting,  they  should  do  so 
standing.  In  1846  it  was  decided  that  a  deacon  could  not  be  ordained  to 
the  office  of  bishop. — "Classified  Minutes",  p  108. 


UNIFICATION  17S 

bear  upon  the  Meeting  to  have  the  other  officers  ordained 
likewise,  but  the  demand  for  a  visible  incarnation  of  the 
unity  of  the  church  was  too  strong  to  permit  the  lesser 
officials  to  have  the  same  treatment  as  the  bishop  of  the 
Church.* 

The  relation  of  the  ministry  to  its  own  and  neighboring 
congregations  gradually  was  defined.  For  example,  as 
early  as  1822  ix,  was  decided  that  an  elder  should  not  pro- 
ceed to  any  course  of  action,  without  consulting  the 
church.  In  1849  it  was  decided  that  if  the  elder  commit- 
ted an  error,  he  must  confess  to  the  church,  like  any 
other  member.  There  was  to  be  no  chance  for  the  growth 
of  a  hierarchy  in  that  direction.  The  church  was  to  be 
supreme.  In  1879  it  was  decided  that  the  ministry  of 
the  church,  or  all  the  officials  together,  have  no  authority 
to  withhold  a  question  of  interest  from  the  congregation. 
A  minister  has  no  authority,  except  in  case  of  great 
danger  that  a  congregation  may  depart  from  the  order  of 
the  Church,  to  go  into  a  neighboring  congregation  and 
meddle  with  its  affairs,  unless  he  be  invited  by  the  con- 
gregation or  its  elder.  It  was  1863  before  this  was  clear- 
ly defined.  The  exception  noted  was  made  under  the 
growth  of  the  ideal  of  uniformity.  In  that  case,  however, 
the  adjoining  elders,  not  one  elder  alone,  were  to  see  that 
the  congregation  did  not  go  astray,  f  This  is  an  evidence 
that  the  seat  of  authority  was  being  transferred  from  the 
local  congregations  to  the  Annual  Meeting. 

Thus,  in  the  local  church,  the  organization  of  the  min- 
istry developed  from  a  formless  one,  in  which  there  were 
ministers  differing  from  one  another  only  in  natural  abil- 
ities and  age,  to  a  ministry  with  three  grades  and  a  dia- 
conate,  each  having  clearly  defined  duties  and  reciprocal 

""Classified  Minutes",  p  95—112. 
fClassined  Minutes",  p  115,  116. 


174  THE  D  TINKERS  IN  AMERICA 

relations.  The  growth  was  from  an  undifferentiated  to  a 
differentiated  ministry.  The  constitution  of  the  local 
congregation  had  become  complex. 

As  local  churches  grew  strong  and  their  territory 
broadened,  it  was  found  necessary  to  divide  each  one  into 
several  districts.  In  1843  the  decision  was  first  made 
that  each  division  constituted  a  separate  church,  even 
though  one  bishop  might  oversee  them  all,  and  that  only 
the  members  of  a  particular  district  had  the  right  to  vote 
for  ministers  or  deacons  iD  that  district.*  Thus,  the  re- 
lations of  congregations  to  each  other  were  gradually 
assuming  definiteness.  The  component  society  of  the 
larger  unit  was  developing. 

In  1857  the  relation  of  one  congregation  to  another  was 
more  clearly  defined  by  the  ruling  that  no  congregation 
has  the  right  to  interfere  in  the  affairs  of  another  by 
restoring  ua  member  to  his  place  in  the  church,  when  he 
had  been  excluded  by  another  branch  of  the  church,  with 
out  the  concurrence  of  the  church  which  excluded  him".f 
In  1881  and  1882  the  final  step  in  the  development  of  the 
local  congregation  was  taken,  when  in  consequence  of  the 
Old  Order  and  Progressive  divisions  it  was  decided  that 
in  each  congregation  the  portion  that  remained  loyal  to 
the  ruling  of  Annual  Meeting  is  the  church,  no  matter 
how  small  a  minority  it  may  be.  This  was  based  on  a 
decision  of  1869  that  a  minority  of  a  congregation  may 
act  with  full  authority  in  carrying  out  the  decisions  of 
Annual  Meeting,  "as  the  Annual  Meeting  is  of  higher 
authority  than  any  one  church".  $  There  the  process 
of  unifying  the  organization  became  complete. 

Beginning  with  1788  there  was  developed   by  1885  a 

""'Classified  Minutes",  p  90. 
t"Classined  Minutes",  p  55. 
%  "Classified  Minutes",  p  57-60;  Cf.  ''Revised  Minutes",  p  43,  Art.  30, 1882. 


UNIFICATION  175 

complete  theory  of  the  relation  of  individual  members  to 
the  local  congregation.  At  first  the  purpose  of  such  defi- 
nition was,  to  prevent  immoral  members  from  imposing 
on  a  congregation  that  knew  nothing  about  them,  by  re- 
quiring them  to  present  certificates  from  their  home 
church.  The  moving  about  that  the  expansion  of  the 
Dunkers  required  accellerated  this  development,  while 
the  conditions  on  which  a  certificate  was  granted  became 
ever  more  strict  under  the  growing  requirements  of 
church  membership,  owing  to  the  development  of  the 
rules  of  Annual  Meeting  known  as  ''the  order".  In  1842 
Annual  Meeting  decided  that  a  local  church  has  a  right 
to  make  resolutions,  which  if  founded  upon  the  Gospel, 
are  binding  upon  all  the  members.  Who  should  say 
whether  they  were  according  to  the  Gospel?  Annual 
Meeting.  But  in  1850,  this  apparent  freedom  of  the  local 
church  was  limited  by  the  ruling  that  "no  district  or 
church  has  any  right  to  make  changes  in  anything  what- 
soever, contrary  to  ancient  order,  without  proper  investi- 
gation before,  and  the  general  consent  of  the  Annual 
Meeting.  In  1863  it  was  decided  that  a  local  congrega- 
tion cannot  ube  congregational,  or  act  independent  from 
the  churches  of  our  Fraternity,  and  still  be  in  full  union 
with  the  church",  "according  to  the  Gospel  and  the  order 
of  the  Brethren".*  Hence,  the  local  church  has  author- 
ity over  the  individual  member  only  when  the  church  is 
in  submission  to  Annual  Meeting-striking  evidence  of 
the  growth  of  the  desire  for  unity. 

In  1856  a  proposal  to  form  "districts  of  five,  six  or 
more,  adjoining  churches,  for  the  purpose  of  meeting 
jointly  at  least  once  a  year,  settling  difficulties,  etc. ,  and 
thus  lessening  the  business  of  our  "Yearly  Meeting", 

^"Classified  Minutes",  p  54,  55. 


176  THE  D  TINKERS  IN  AMEBIC  A 

was  approved  by  Annual  Meeting.*  Not  until  1866,  how- 
ever, had  the  church  organization  been  so  far  developed 
that  the  Annual  Meeting  enacted  a  scheme  of  district 
organization  called  District  Meeting.  Then  it  was  rec- 
ommended "that  each  State  form  itself  into  convenient 
District  Meetings",  and  the  plan  of  organization  was 
minutely  described.!  By  this  invention  a  complete 
scheme  of  church  organization  was  formulated  that 
changed  the  theory  of  the  government  in  many  respects. 
For  example,  it  became  impossible  now  to  take  questions 
directly  from  the  local  congregation  to  Annual  Meeting 
as  hitherto,  except  that  any  member  who  had  fallen  under 
the  condemnation  of  the  church  might  appeal  to  Annual 
Meeting  by  presenting  a  petition  signed  by  a  number  of 
the  members  of  the  church.^: 

Thus,  with  increasing  membership  and  the  growth 
of  congregations,  and  with  the  growth  of  means  of  com- 
munication, the  variations  of  doctrine  and  practice,  that 
the  years  of  isolation  following  the  expansion  had  engen- 
dered, became  apparent  and  demanded  settlement  under 
the  growing  ideal  of  unity.  The  District  Meeting  was  an 
invention  for  the  division  of  social  labor.  The  invention 
was  contingent  upon  the  growth  of  the  Dunkers  numer- 
ically and  upon  the  development  of  means  of  communica- 

*4 'Classified  Minutes",  p  50. 

fThe  Meeting  was  to  be  constituted  by  one  or  two  representatives  from 
each  organized  church.  The  style  of  procedure  was  to  be  as  much  like  tbe 
ordinary  council  meeting  of  the  local  church  as  possible.  Their  duty 
was  to  settle  questions  of  interest  local  to  that  district  and  thus  assist 
Annual  Meeting  in  the  transaction  of  the  increasing  business.  Hitherto 
all  questions  of  merely  local  interest  that  could  not  be  settled  in  the  local 
congregation  was  carried  to  Annual  Meeting.  No  business  could  come 
before  District  Meeting  until  it  had  first  passed  through  the  church  in 
which  it  originated. 

^'Classified  Minutes",  p  13. 


UNIFICATION  177 

tion  and  the  consequent  development  of  dogmatic  like- 
mindedness. 

The  process  of  socialization  is  illustrated  best,  perhaps, 
in  the  development  of  the  Annual  Meeting.  Frequency 
of  communication  and  association,  growth  of  reflective 
sympathy  and  the  rise  of  the  ideals  that  dominated  their 
thought  led  to  the  development.  This  tendency  was 
furthered  by  the  necessity  of  pronouncing  upon  questions 
of  doctrine,  of  interpreting  customs  and  of  unifying 
diverse  elements  in  the  membership.  Permanence  of 
cooperation  in  Annual  Meeting  showed  the  wisdom  of 
such  a  meeting  for  the  exchange  of  views,  for  the  settle- 
ment of  local  difficulties  and  for  pronouncements  on 
difficult  questions,  while  the  pleasures  of  the  meeting 
also  made  for  its  continuance. 

It  may  seem  remarkable  that  no  great  development 
took  place  in  this  body  until  1866.  The  committee,  whose 
business  it  was  to  consider  all  matters  presented  and  to 
decide  what  should  come  before  the  Meeting,  and  out 
of  which  body  the  Standing  Committee  was  finally 
developed,  suffered  practically  no  change  until  1868. 
Furthermore,  the  method  of  presenting  queries  to  Annual 
Meeting  is  a  survival  from  the  time  of  its  origin  in  1742. 

It  would  be  a  mistake,  however,  to  suppose  that  there 
was  no  development  until  that  late  date.  In  minor  matters 
many  changes  were  made.  In  1813  the  necessity  of  hav- 
ing some  from  each  church  present  at  Annual  Meeting 
found  voice.  In  1832  it  was  decided  that  the  date  of  be- 
ginning the  Meeting  should  be  changed  to  Pentecost  and 
that  the  opening  service  should  be  held  on  Sunday  instead 
of  Friday  or  Saturday  as  hitherto.*    In  1848  it  was  recom- 

*"Classified  Minutes",  p  7.  The  public  preaching  service  and  Love 
Feast  occupied  Sunday  and  the  business  sessions  began  on  Monday.  After 
much  discussion  in  1846  it  was  decided  to  go  back  to  the  plan  of  having  the 


178  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

mended  that  Monday  following  Whitsuntide  should  be 
observed  uas  a  day  of  general  fasting  and  prayer",  hence 
the  business  did  not  begin  until  Tuesday.  That  is  the 
present  practice.  Monday  is  now  occupied  with  Educa- 
tional, Sunday  School  and  Missionary  Meetings.  In  1851 
and  1855  it  was  decided  that  there  should  be  no  commun- 
ion meeting  in  connection  with  the  Annual  Meeting,  be- 
cause of  the  great  crowds  in  attendance.* 

In  1813  the  Annual  Meeting  was  urging  the  overseers 
of  the  churches  to  advertise  the  time  and  place  of  holding 
it,  so  that  more  might  attend.  In  1847  the  attendance 
had  become  so  large  that  the  meeting  was  made  a  delegate 
body,  with  the  provision  that  "not  more  than  two  be  sent 
from  each  church,  with  a  written  certificate,  containing, 
also,  the  queries  to  be  presented  (by  the  church  which 
they  represent)  to  the  Yearly  Meeting,  "t  Finally,  in 
1882  representation  was  placed  on  the  basis  of  one  dele- 
gate for  each  two  hundred  members,  or  fraction  thereof, 
in  a  congregation,  not  to  exceed  two  delegates  from  any 
congregation.  While  all  members  present  might  join  in 
the  discussion,  all  questions  that  did  not  pass  by  unani- 
mous consent  were  to  be  decided  by  a  two-thirds  major- 
ity of  the  delegates  present.  Each  member  of  the  Stand- 
ing Committee  was  counted  as  one  delegate  in  this  voting. 

By  equal  strides,  with  the  development  in  organization 
went  the  growth  in  the  theory  of  the  authority  of  the  An- 
nual Meeting.  As  early  as  1805  we  find  a  minute  that 
says,  "Further,  it  has  been  considered,  that  when  there 
is  made  a  conclusion  at  the  big  Yearly  Meeting,  and  there 

private  business  sessions  on  Friday  and  Saturday.  Finally,  in  1847  it  was 
decided  that  the  new  plan  of  holding  the  business  sessions,  after  the  Sun- 
day services,  was  best. 

^"Classified  Minutes",  p  10, 11. 
-{-"Classified  Minutes",  p  8. 


UNIFICATION  179 

are  members  who  would  not  heed,  nor  conduct  themselves 
accordingly,  it  has  been  concluded  unitedly,  that  when 
such  persons  cannot  convince  the  Church  by  evidence 
from  Holy  Scripture,  and  would  or  did  rise  up  against 
said  Church  conclusion,  would  not  hear  or  obey  at  all,  in 
such  case  we  could  not  well  do  otherwise,  but  after  suf- 
ficient and  friendly  admonition,  set  them  back  from  the 
breaking  of  bread  until  they  learn  to  do  better  and  be- 
come obedient."*  This  is  the  penalty  of  suspension,  not 
expulsion.  In  1848  a  query  was  sent  up  asking  whether 
it  would  not  be  expedient  to  refer  the  decisions  of  An- 
nual Meeting  back  to  the  congregations  for  final  approv- 
al before  they  became  binding,  but  it  was  decided  "that 
it  would  not  be  expedient  so  to  do,  as  it  would  be  the 
means  of  accumulating  the  amount  of  business,  "f  How- 
ever, in  1850  it  was  decided  that  anyone  not  satisfied 
with  a  decision  could,  with  the  consent  of  his  con- 
gregation, bring  it  before  another  Annual  Meeting  for 
reconsideration. 

The  stricter  practice  began  with  a  decision  in  1858  in 
regard  to  the  case  of  a  private  member,  who  held  the  coun- 
sel of  the  Meeting  in  disrespect.  It  was  decided  that  the 
individual  should  be  admonished  and,  if  he  refused  to 
hear,  "should  be  dealt  with  according  to  Matt,  xviii/'t 
At  that  time  the  desire  for  unanimity  had  not  yet  be- 
come so  controlling  that  the  Meeting  was  willing  to  go 
any  length  to  secure  it,  for  in  reply  to  a  question  as  to 
whether  a  minister  and  some  members  of  a  congregation, 
who  had  violated  the  decisions  of  Annual  Meeting,  should 
"not  fall  into  the  hands  of  brethren  of  adjacent  districts, 
as  offenders,  and  to  be  dealt  with  as  such,"  it  was  decid- 

*"Classified  Minutes",  p  28. 
T"Classined  Minutes,"  p  28. 
tlbid,  p  29. 


4 

180  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

ed  that  the  means  already  in  use  were  ''sufficient  to  give 
the  teachers  and  housekeepers  and  members  in  general, 
the  decisions  of  our  Annual  Council  for  the  perfecting  of 
love  and  union  throughout  the  Brotherhood, "  that  "the 
Gospel,  with  the  practice,  or  order,  coDsistent  with  the 
Gospel,  will  preserve  the  union  of  the  Brotherhood." 

In  1860  a  further  step  towards  the  absolute  authority 
of  the  Annual  Meeting  was  taken  in  a  decision  in  reply 
to  the  query,  "Is  it,  then,  consistent  with  our  profession, 
(that  the  New  Testament  was  their  only  rule  of  faith  and 
practice),  to  make  a  strict  observance  of  the  Minutes  of 
the  Annual  Council  a  test  of  fellowship?"  The  answer 
was,  "The  decisions  of  the  Annual  Meeting  are  obligatory 
until  such  decisions  shall  be  repealed  by  the  same  au- 
thority". However,  the  Meeting  was  not  yet  prepared 
to  stand  by  what  was  involved  in  that  decision,  as  is 
shown  by  the  answer  to  the  query  in  1865.  "Does  the 
Annual  Council  make  laws,  or  give  advice  only,  in  cases 
where  it  has  no  direct  Gospel  on  the  subject?"  The  re- 
ply was,  "It  gives  advice  only."  In  the  struggles  with 
the  increasing  number  of  those  who  rebelled  against  the 
growing  power  of  Annual  Meeting  the  theory  gradually 
assumed  its  final  form.  In  1871  it  was  decided  to  disci- 
pline brethren  who  spoke  or  wrote  disrespectfully  of  the 
decisions  of  the  Annual  Meeting.  The  final  step  was 
taken  in  1882,  when  the  Annual  Meeting  granted  a  peti- 
tion from  some  District  Meeting  "that  hereafter  all 
queries  sent  to  Annual  Meeting  for  decision,  shall  in  all 
cases  be  decided  according  to  the  Scriptures,  where  there 
is  anything  direct  ('Thus  saith  the  Lord,')  applying  to 
the  question.  And  all  questions  to  which  there  is  no  di- 
rect expressed  Scripture  applying,  shall  be  decided  ac- 
cording to  the  spirit  and  meaning  of  the  Scripture.  And 
that  decision  shall  be  mandatory  to  all  the  churches  hav- 


UNIFICATION  181 

ing  such  cases  as  the  decision  covers.  And  all  who  shall 
not  so  heed  and  observe  it,  shall  be  held  as  not  hearing  the 
Church,  and  shall  be  dealt  with  accordingly."*  The  next 
year  this  was  modified  by  the  declaration  that  this  "de- 
cision shall  not  be  so  construed  as  to  prevent  the  An- 
nual Meeting  from  giving  advice  when  it  deems  it  proper 
to  do  so,  and  that  given  as  advice,  shall  be  so  entered  up- 
on the  Minutes,  "t  Thus,  the  theory  of  the  authority  of 
Annual  Meeting  had  developed.  At  first  its  decisions 
were  advice  only.  By  1882  its  decisions  were  advice 
only  when  such  was  plainly  stated  in  the  minutes,  all  other 
decisions  were  "mandatory."  The  steps  in  that  develop- 
ment were  taken  between  1865  and  1882.  That  was  the 
period  of  rapid  social  development  in  the  country  at  large 
and  also  of  the  rapid  socialization  of  the  Dunker  church 
along  other  lines. 

Even  as  constituted  in  Zinzendorf 's  Synods,  the  com- 
mittee of  control,  out  of  which  grew  the  Standing  Com- 
mittee in  the  Dunker  church,  was  a  device  of  no  mean 
power.  It  had  absolute  control  over  what  should  come 
before  the  Synod.  As  it  developed  in  the  Dunker  frater- 
nity it  became,  in  effect,  the  church.  Step  by  step  it 
evolved  into  an  engine  of  tremendous  power.  At  first,  a 
means  whereby  trivial  and  local  questions  might  be  kept 
out  of  the  meeting,  a  device  for  the  saving  of  time,  it  be- 
came in  the  course  of  the  history  an  instrument  by  which 
free  discussion  was  stifled  and  the  will  of  a  small  minori- 
ty was  impressed  upon  local  churches  all  over  the  Broth- 
erhood, even  in  cases  when  every  member  in  that  congre- 
gation rebelled  against  its  procedure.  This  was  possible 
because  of  its  powers  in  two  capacities — its  right,  to  con- 
trol queries,  and  its  right  to  appoint  committees  to  local 
churches. 

*"Classified  Minutes",  p  31.  (Italics  theirs). 

^'Classified  Minutes,"  p  31. 


182  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

The  organization  of  the  Standing  Committee  was  out- 
lined in  1866.  According  to  that  plan  it  was  to  be  com- 
posed of  ordained  elders,  chosen  by  the  elders  of  the 
church  where  the  Meeting  was  held,  three  from  each  of 
the  States,  Virginia,  Maryland,  Pennsylvania,  Ohio,  In- 
diana and  Illinois,  and  two  from  each  of  the  other  states 
in  which  there  were  Dunker  churches,  except  that  when- 
ever any  state  had  ten  bishops  within  it,  it  should  be  en- 
titled to  three  members  of  the  Committee.  This  plan 
was  modified  in  1868  by  a  decision  that  the  members  of 
the  Standing  Committee  should  be  elected  by  the  District 
Meetings,  one  elder  from  each  district.* 

Its  officers,  to  be  chosen  by  itself,  were  a  moderator, 
a  writing  clerk,  a  reading  clerk  and  a  doorkeeper  with 
duties  appropriate  to  each.  It  was  provided  that  the 
moderator  of  the  Standing  Committee  should  be  the  pre- 
siding officer  of  the  Meeting.  Two  years  later  it 
was  decided  that  the  officers,  except  moderator,  might  be 
chosen  from  the  members  of  the  Annual  Meeting  who 
were  not  members  of  the  Standing  Committee.  In  1880 
it  was  decided  that  the  Moderator  also  need  not  be  chosen 
from  the  members  of  the  Standing  Committee.  In  1871 
there  were  protests  against  the  assumption  of  authority 
by. the  Standing  Committee  and  a  recommendation  was 
made  that  there  be  a  frequent  change  in  Moderators  and 
clerks.  In  1885  the  Meeting  decided  "that  no  brother 
shall  be  allowed  to  serve  with  the  Standing  Committee  as 
Moderator  or  Clerk  more  than  twice  in  four  years. "  Thus, 
gradually  the  organization  of  the  Standing  Committee 
was  perfected. 

The  primary  purpose  of  the  Standing  Committee  origi- 
nally was  to  serve  as  a  committee  of  general  arrangement 
for  the  Annual  Meeting.     The  duties  naturally  fell  into 

^"Classified  Minutes",  p  14,  39. 


UNIFICATION  183 

two  classes,  the  consideration  of  what  queries  should  be 
presented  to  Annual  Meeting  and  the  arrangement  of  the 
place  of  meeting.  In  the  course  of  time  the  two  classes 
of  duties  were  divorced  and,  while  those  relating  to  the 
matters  to  be  presented  to  the  Meeting  were  left  in  the 
hands  of  the  Standing  Committee,  the  other  class  was 
given  into  the  hands  of  what  came  to  be  called  the  Com- 
mittee of  Arrangements,  appointed  by  the  local  church 
where  the  meeting  was  held. 

Perhaps  as  important  as  the  duty  of  acting  as  a  com- 
mittee to  consider  queries  beforehand  and  determine 
what  should  come  before  Annual  Meeting  was  the  duty 
of  appointing  committees  to  settle  troubles  in  local 
churches.  In  case  there  was  trouble  in  a  congregation 
it  early  became  the  practice  to  ask  help  from  either  the 
elders  living  in  an  adjoining  church,  or  of  the  Annual  Meet- 
ing. The  former  was  the  earlier  practice.  As  early  as 
1791  advice  was  given  by  visiting  brethren  to  the  Ger- 
man town  church,  but  it  was  not  a  committee  sent  from 
Annual  Meeting.*  The  earliest  committee  known  to 
have  been  sent  to  settle  trouble  in  a  local  church  was  in 
1849. t  The  Standing  Committee  had  the  appointment  of 
such  committees.  Gradually  the  practice  of  settling 
trouble  in  a  congregation  by  a  committee  from  Annual 
Meeting  almost  superseded  the  earlier  method  of  calling 
in  adjoining  elders.  %  After  the  organization  of  District 
Meetings  a  local  church  could  apply  for  a  committee 
from  the  District  instead  of  one  from  Annual   Meeting. 

*Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  504.  Brumbaugh  gives  the 
reader  the  impression  that  this  was  a  committee  asked  of  Annual  Meeting 
by  the  Germantown  church.  According  to  the  record  quoted  it  was  rather 
a  general  meeting,  perhaps  the  Annual  Meeting  for  that  year.  On  p  491 
Brumbaugh  seems  to  incline  to  that  opinion  himself. 

^'Classified  Minutes",  p  388. 

{"Classified  Minutes",  p  41-45. 


184  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

However,  the  authority  of  the  committees  sent  by  the 
latter  had  been  advanced  to  such  a  degree  by  1876  that  a 
request  was  granted  by  Annual  Meeting  that  the  power 
of  such  committees  be  limited,  "so  as  not  to  allow  them 
to  expel  a  majority  of  any  church,  unless  their  decision 
is  ratified  by  the  Annual  Meeting  in  open  session".* 
The  climax  of  this  development  was  reached  during  the 
troublous  days  of  1880-1882.  -  After  that  the  liberaliza- 
tion of  the  committee  system,  as  also  of  the  whole  organ- 
ization, began. 

Thus  did  the  Dunker  church  develop  in  organization 
and  ideals,  as  it  grew  in  numbers  and  as  the  United 
States  increased  in  population  and  social  integration.  It 
had  become  practically  socialized  by  1880,  with  the 
exception  of  the  last  step  in  the  process,  liberalization, 
which  is  to  be  noticed  in  the  next  chapter.  The  ultimate 
cause  of  this  process  will  be  noticed  after  the  de- 
velopment has  been  traced  to  its  completion. 

The  hiatus  in  Dunker  history  between  the  close  of  the 
Revolutionary  War  and  1850  has  often  been  noticed. 
The  Dunker  church  went  out  into  the  wilderness  at  the 
beginning  of  that  period,  and  shared  in  the  development 
of  the  great  Central  Plain.  She  began  to  come  to  self- 
consciousness  about  1835  and  from  that  time  on  to  1882 
worked  ceaselessly  at  the  task  of  unifying  her  organic 
structure,  her  practices  and  her  beliefs.  When  in  1880 
the  Old  Order  Brethren  withdrew  and  in  1882  the  Pro- 
gressive Brethren  were  expelled,  the  task  was  complete. 
It  was  unification  by  heroic  methods,  but  it  had  the  great 
merit  of  being  effective.  Another  and  greater  task  then 
awaited  her. 

*uClassified  Minutes",  p  48. 


CHAPTER  V. 


Liberalization  of  the  Dunkers. 

The  yearning  of  the  Dunkers  for  unity  was  expressed 
most  clearly  in  the  "mandatory"  decision  of  the  Annual 
Meeting  of  1882.  While  the  passion  for  homogeneity  and 
the  consequent  ;expulsion  of  "Progressives"  continued  at 
high  tension  for  some  time,  it  was  not  long  before  the 
Annual  Meeting  elders  had  either  cowed  into  submission 
or  expeHed  the  troublesome  element  and  homogeneity  be- 
came relatively  perfect.  This  had  two  results:  it  enabled 
the  Church  to  devote  its  energies  to  the  acquisition  of 
members ;  and,  as  there  was  now  a  greater  social  homo- 
geneity, there  began  the  growth  of  greater  liberty,  both 
personal  and  associational,  in  social  mind  and  social 
organization. 

Great  as  was  the  increase  of  the  Dunker  population  from 
1790,  when  there  was  not  more  than  1462  members  in 
America,  to  1881-2,  when  there  were  57,749,  the  increase 
from  the  latter  date  to  the  present  was  even  more 
startling-*  In  1890,  the  total  number  of  Dunkers  in  the 
four  bodies  was  73,795,  a  gain  of  almost  28  per  cent  for 
the  the  nine  years.  +  On  Jan.  5,  1905,  according  to  Dr. 
Carroll,  there  were  114,194,  a  gain  in  25  years  of  more 
than  97.7  per  cent4 

It  has  often  been  a  matter  of  surprise  that  such  rapid 
increase  in  membership  should  have  immediately  follow- 
ed a  period  of  strife  and  heart-breaking  such  as  was  nev- 
er  known  before  in  tne  history  of  the  denomination. 

*Howard  Miller,  "Record  of  the  Faithful",  p  66.  At  last  after  diligent 
search  and  some  advertising  this  first  official  census  of  the  Dunkers  came 
into  my  hands  and  I  am  able  to  give  statistics  of  the  Dunkers  just  at  the 
turning  point  of  their  recent  and  most  striking  history. 

tU.  S.  Census,  1890. 

^"Christian  Advocate",  New  York  City. 


186  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

When  one  looks  at  the  matter,  however,  from  the  sociol- 
ogical point  of  view,  he  can  easily  understand  it.  Com- 
ing down  from  the  period  following  the  expansion  were 
three  main  classes  in  the  Dunker  population. 

There  was  the  class  composed  of  those  that  had  been 
most  isolated  from  the  influences  of  an  advancing  civiliza- 
tion, who,  by  nature  conservative,  had  not  been  touched 
by  the  social  influences  that  were  remaking  society  in  the 
United  States,  and  who  stood  like  a  rock  against  all 
changes  from  the  old  ways  of  their  fathers.  These  were 
what  came  to  be  called  the  Old  Order  Brethren.  Their 
stronghold  numerically  was  in  the  Miami  Valley  of  Ohio, 
although  in  almost  every  Dunker  congregation  in  1880 
there  were  more  or  less  of  such. 

Then  there  was  the  class  at  the  other  extreme,  com- 
posed of  members  who  had  been  most  influenced  by  the 
extra-Dunker  society.  For  the  most  part  these. were 
those  who,  naturally  progressive,  had  lived  in  towns  or 
cities,  or  in  communities  that  were  up-to-date  socially. 
They  had  been  affected  by  the  social  influences  of  a  rapid- 
ly developing  civilization.  Many  of  them  in  their  youth 
had  attended  the  public  schools  in  towns  near  their  homes, 
had  access  to  the  newspapers,  had  acquired  a  taste  for  lit- 
erature, and  had  learned  that  there  were  good  people  out- 
side the  Dunker  church.  In  short,  they  were  those  who 
had  been  affected  so  far  by  the  civilization  about  them 
that  the  Dunker  ideas  and  customs  that  had  no  "thus 
saith  the  Lord"  to  support  them  had  no  standing  in  their 
estimation.  Seeing  the  advantage  of  education  to  indi- 
viduals and  the  church,  they  were  in  favor  of  higher 
schools  and  colleges.  Realizing  the  benefits  that  the  oth- 
er churches  were  getting  out  of  Sunday  schools,  prayer 
meetings  and  revival  meetings,  they  advocated  these  in- 
stitutions.    Appreciating  the  necessity  of  having  some 


LIBERALIZATION  187 

organ  for  the  discussion  of  questions  of  interest  to  the 
denomination  and  the  dissemiuation  of  new  ideas,  they 
started  the  church  papers.  Believing  that  the  only  way 
for  the  church  to  succeed  in  the  changing  conditions  of 
social  life  was  to  adapt  the  church  in  non-essentials  to  the 
age  in  which  they  lived,  they  advocated  the  adoption  of 
modern  methods  of  church  work,  modern  ideas  and  cus- 
toms.    Their  party  was  known  as  the  Progressives. 

Between  these  two  classes,  more  numerous  by  far  than 
both  of  the  others  together,  was  the  third  class,  the  Con- 
servatives, as  they  were  called.  This  party  was  com- 
posed of  those  that  had  been  influenced  by  the  environing 
society  more  than  the  Old  Order  Brethren,  but  less  than 
the  Progressives,  and  felt  that  time  would  bring  about 
all  the  changes  that  were  necessary.  They  were  less 
logical  than  either  of  the  other  parties,  and  therefore 
could  the  more  easily  compromise.  At  first  they  favored 
keeping  the  church  intact  at  almost  any  price,  but,  as  the 
Progressives  became  more  aggressive  and  radical,  and 
as  the  men  in  control  of  the  Annual  Meeting  were  more 
favorable  to  the  Old  Order  Brethren  than  to  the  Progres- 
sives, the  Annual  Meeting  finally  decided  that  the 
latter  must  get  out,  in  order  to  save  the  Old  Order 
Brethren  to  the  church  and  for  the  sake  of  the  dignity  of 
the  Annual  Meeting. 

The  result  of  the  trouble  was  that  the  Old  Order  Breth- 
ren withdrew,  and  the  Progressives  were  expelled  by 
thousands.  Many  thought  that  these  ruptures  in  the 
Church  would  destroy  it,  and  were  surprised  when  all 
three  branches  prospered  as  never  before.  One  has  but 
to  read  the  church  papers  of  that  day  to  realize  the  dark 
apprehensions  that  filled  the  mind  of  almost  every  writer 
on  both  sides.* 

*Just  one  example  will  suffice.  In  1881-1882  Howard  Miller,  one  of  the 
keenest-minded  men  in  the  Conservative  party,  wrote,  "It  is  therefore  safe 


188  THE  DUNEEBS  IN  AMERICA 

How  is  the  growth  to  be  explained?  By  the  circum- 
stance that  this  segregation  of  unlike  elements  in  the 
Dunker  church  increased  the  homogeneity  of  each  party, 
developed  consciousness  of  kind  very  completely,  precipi- 
tated conflict  between  the  three  parties  and  developed  zeal 
in  a  corresponding  degree.  On  the  other  hand  the  dis- 
appearance of  the  causes  of  friction  in  each  body  stopped 
the  controversy,  and  gave  each  time  to  devote  its  ener- 
gies to  the  building  up  of  its  membership.  This  increas- 
ing social  homogeneity  gave  rise  to  greatly  increased 
activity  and,  consequently,  to  a  vast  increase  in  numbers. 

Another  result  of  the  segregation  of  the  different  so- 
cial elements  in  the  Dunker  church  was  the  liberty  con- 
sequent on  the  social  homogeneity  in  the  conservative 
and  progressive  parties.  Liberty  of  thought,  custom 
and  organization  is  possible  only  when  the  population  has 
become  socially  homogeneous.  As  we  saw  in  the  pre- 
vious chapter,  it  was  the  efforts  of  a  predominant,  ho- 
mogeneous party  to  reduce  the  heterogeneity  of  the  mem- 
bership that  led  to  the  policy  of  coercion,  against  which 
the  Progressives  revolted.  Therefore  when  the  unlike 
social  elements  separated,  policies  of  liberalization  be- 
came possible  in  the  progressive  and  conservative  part- 
ies, because  of  the  change  that  took  place  in  the  mode  of 
likemindedness.  Reverence  for  tradition  had  been  char- 
acteristic of  their  type  of  mind.  It  now  became  more 
liberal.  How  this  change  in  the  type  of  mind  took  place 
must  now  be  explained.  Generally  a  change  in  the  social 
mind  is  effected  in  two  ways  in  the  period  following  the 
time  of  consolidation  in  any  society;  (1)  by  the  freeing 
of  energies  from  the  tasks  of  welding  the  society  into  a 

to  estimate  the  strength  of  the  Brethren  in  the  United  States  as  above, 
and  for  many  years  to  come,  at  our  present  rate  of  growth;  'between'  55,- 
000  and  '60,000'  will  be  a  truthful  statement  of  our  strength." — "Record 
of  the  Faithful",  p  87.    Yet,  in  1890,  they  had  73,795. 


LIBERALIZATION  189 

political  unity  by  conflict  and  the  devotion  of  those  ener- 
gies to  the  criticism  of  current  thought,  policy,  customs, 
and  organization  of  the  society,  and  (2)  by  the  physical 
and  psychical  plasticity  consequent  on  the  amalgamation 
of  different  social  elements.  Following  the  Civil  War 
the  social  mind  of  the  people  of  the  United  States  was  so 
changed  and  became  more  liberal. 

Only  indirectly,  however,  was  the  social  mind  of  the 
smaller  social  unit,  the  Dunker  church,  affected  by  the 
broadening*  influences  that  the  soldiers  brought  back  with 
them  from  that  war,  for  the  Dunkers  were  a  peace  people 
and  did  not  participate  in  the  struggle.  Nevertheless, 
an  occasional  Dunker' s  son  had  gone  to  the  front.  Per- 
haps, after  his  return  he  joined  the  Church  and  married, 
possibly,  a  Dunker  girl.  More  frequently  a  non-Dunker 
who  had  been  a  soldier,  did  the  same  thing.  In  these 
ways  the  Dunkers  were  touched  to  a  certain  extent  by 
the  same  influences  that  worked  the  change  in  the  social 
mind  of  the  integral  society.  For  the  most  part,  however, 
such  change  in  the  social  mind  of  the  Dunkers  as  was 
due  to  the  Civil  War  can  be  traced  to  the  impression  of 
the  ideals  of  the  society  about  them  upon  the  Dunkers, 
and  the  imitation  by  the  latter  of  the  environing  society. 

More  important  than  this  indirect  influence  was  the 
condition  within  the  Dunker  church  itself  that  made  pos- 
sible such  a  change.  After  the  middle  of  the  century, 
and  especially  after  the  close  of  the  Civil  War,  certain  of 
the  Dunkers  found  themselves  released  from  the  more 
serious  part  of  the  burdens  incident  to  building  homes 
and  clearing  farms  in  the  wilderness.  Their  energies 
and  money  were  freed  for  the  purposes  of  culture.  They 
could  now  afford  to  devote  time  and  money  to  the  educa- 
tion of  their  children  and  could  take  a  greater  interest  in 


190  THE  DUNKER  8  IN  AMERICA 

the  affairs  of  the  world,  as  these  affairs  were  to  be  known 
through  the  medium  of  books  and  newspapers.  Further- 
more, these  conditions  also  allowed  time  and  energy  to  be 
devoted  to  the  examination  and  criticism  of  the  ideas, 
customs,  policies  and  organization  of  the  Dunker  church 
itself  by  its  members.  Very  significant  is  the  fact  that 
the  first  Dunker  newspaper  since  Sauer's  "Geistliche 
Magazin"  was  a  small  monthy  that  originated  at  Poland, 
Ohio,  in  1851.  And  still  more  significant  was  the  fact 
that  thirteen  years  later  the  "Christian  Family  Compan- 
ion", a  weekly,  edited  and  published  by  Henry  R.  Hol- 
singer,  found  a  large  number  of  readers  in  the  Dunker 
church,  for  it  was  avowedly  progressive  in  its  tendencies, 
and  devoted  much  space  to  the  criticism  of  the  Church.* 
The  fact  that  it  leaped  into  popularity  so  quickly  shows 
that  Dunkers  were  in  the  mood  to  criticise  their  church. 
This  freedom  from  the  demands  of  home-making  not 
only  freed  Dunker  energy  to  be  devoted  to  criticism  of 
the  church,  but  it  also  permitted  their  children  to  have  a 
broader  experience  and  culture.  Their  homes  were  built, 
their  farms  were  bringing  them  comfortable  returns, 
there  was  a  great  increase  of  social  advantages  for  their 
children  in  the  rapidly  growing  towns  about  them. 
Schools  were  growing  up  rapidly  and,  since  there  was 
not  now  a  need  for  all  the  children  on  the  farm,  some 
of  them,  generally  the  younger  ones,  were  sent  to  school 
at  the  nearby  town.  This  circumstance  made  the  social 
mind  of  such  more  plastic.  After  imitating  the  culture 
of  the  extra-Dunker  society,  such  a  child  went  back  home 
carrying  the  broader  outlook  obtained  in  the  town,  thus 
affecting  in  some  measure  the  social  mind  of  the  family  to 

*See  especially  Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc.",  p  470  f.  As  he 
was  the  leader  of  the  Progressives  and  the  advocate  of  most  of  the  changes 
that  took  place  the  importance  of  his  book  for  this  period  cannot  be  exag- 
gerated.   Cf.  Howard  Miller,  "Record  of  the  Faithful",  p  89  f. 


LIBERALIZATION  191 

which  such  a  youth  belonged,  and  having  a  most  potent  in- 
fluence on  the  social  mind  of  the  next  generation.* 

Therefore,  when  these  young  men  began  to  advocate 
their  views  through  such  papers  as  the  "Christian 
Family  Companion",  and  the  " Progressive  Christian", 
the  latter  paper  started  in  Berlin,  Penna.,  by  Holsinger 
and  Beer  in  1878,  a  process  of  conflict  began  within  the 
church.  Two  tendencies  were  pitted  against  each  other: 
the  tendency  towards  consolidation  and  uniformity, 
backed  by  the  likemindedness  of  the  great  majority  of 
the  church,  and  the  tendency  towards  liberalization  and 
progress,  supported  by  the  small  but  aggressive  party 

*That  such  was  the  process  by  which  the  social  mind  of  the  Dunkers  was 
liberalized  is  shown  by  the  case  of  Henry  R.  Holsinger,  to  whom  more  than 
to  any  other  man  in  the  Dunker  fraternity  is  due  the  credit  of  bringing" 
about  the  liberal  epoch  in  that  church.  His  father  was  a  better  educated 
man  than  most  of  the  Dunker  preachers  of  that  day.  "He  was  about  the 
only  English-speaking  Tunker  in  the  community". — Holsinger,  "History 
of  the  Tunkers,  etc.",  p  340.  He  was  a  lover  of  poetry  and  "could  recite 
page  after  page  from  many  of  the  poets*'.  Holsinger  testifies  that  while 
he  never  succeeded  in  getting  more  than  a  common  school  education,  he 
himself  always  had  a  deep  yearning  for  an  education.  Brought  up  in  such 
a  family  that  desire  was  but  natural.  He  was  not  afraid  of  Sunday  schools, 
and  from  the  very  first  his  type  of  mind  was  rational  rather  than  dogmatic. 
In  his  early  manhood  he  served  a  year's  apprenticeship  in  the  printing 
office  of  the  "Gospel  Visitor",  the  first  Dunker  paper  in  the  nineteenth 
century,  and  by  travel  and  reading  became  more  than  ever  convinced  that 
there  were  many  things  in  the  Dunker  church  that  must  be  changed.  He 
felt  the  influence  of  the  thought  of  the  world  about  him,  and  saw  the  con- 
trast between  the  Dunker  preachers,  ideas,  culture,  customs  and  organiza- 
tion and  those  of  the  other  churches  of  the  country.  He  felt  the  influence 
of  the  new  social  era  that  had  dawned  upon  the  United  States  and  endeav- 
ored to  impress  what  he  felt  upon  the  Dunker  church. 

Holsinger's  case  is  typical,  for  in  the  Dunker  church  there  were  many 
young  men  who  had  duplicated  his  experience  by  imitating  the  broader 
culture  of  the  growing  American  social  life.  Much  the  same  broadening 
influences  had  surrounded  Henry  Kurtz,  the  founder  of  the  first  modern 
Dunker  paper.— Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc.",  p  3-8,  339  f,  350  f, 
354,  470  f . 


192  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

composed  of  men  that  had   been  affected  by  the  more 
rational  social  mind  of  American  society. 

The  final  sifting,  however,  did  not  occur  until  the 
the  divisions  were  made  in  1880-1882.  Then  a  pro- 
cess of  social  selection  began.  The  ultra-conservatives 
in  the  Dunker  church  either  modified  their  views  or 
went  with  the  Old  Order  Brethren.  The  extreme  pro- 
gressives, in  like  manner,  went  out  with  Holsinger 
and  the  Progressives.  This  process  continued  for  years, 
until  gradually  the  more  progressive  members  were  to  be 
found  in  the  Brethren  church,  as  the  progressives  called 
themselves,  the  ultra-conservatives  in  the  Old  Order 
Brethren  church,  while  the  moderates  of  both  tendencies 
remained  with  the  moderately  conservative  party  known 
officially  as  the  German  Baptist  Brethren. 

The  effect  of  the  cessation  of  strife  and  the  social  ho- 
mogeneity, consequent  upon  this  social  selection,  was 
marked  on  the  social  mind  of  each  of  the  parties.  At 
once,  all  incentives  to  progress  were  inhibited  in  the  case 
of  the  Old  Order  Brethren.  They  were  so  homogeneous 
that  liberalization  was  impossible. 

Among  the  Progressives,  there  was  sufficient  hetero- 
geneity to  insure  the  continuance  of  the  development  of 
the  social  mind,  while  there  was  also  a  tendency  to 
become  less  radical  than  it  seemed  at  first  they  might 
become. 

The  Conservatives,  on  the  other  hand,  retained  a  large 
number  of  members  progressively  inclined,  who  at  once 
began  to  criticise  and  reconstruct  the  Dunker  church, 
which  tendency  was  furthered  by  the  necessity  of  so 
liberalizing  the  church  as  to  prevent  more  of  the  pro- 
gressively inclined  from  going  over  to  the  Progressives. 

On  the  last  two  parties  it  had  the  effect  of  freeing 
energies,  long  wasted  in  controversy,  for  purposes  of  crit- 


LIBERALIZATION  193 

icism,  reconstruction  and  aggressive  measures  for  in- 
creasing the  membership.  Thus,  it  reacted  upon  the 
social  population  and  gave  the  Dunker  church,  especially 
in  the  two  largest  branches,  the  great  increase  in 
membership  noted  above. 

Finally,  this  social  selection  reacted  also  upon  the  in- 
dividuals composing  the  membership  of  each  party.  The 
conservative  became  more  liberal  and  that  insured  that  the 
members  of  the  middle  party  should  become  constantly 
more  progressive,  because  progress  is  possible  only 
when  there  is  social  heterogeneity  that  is  of  such  degree 
that  it  is  constantly  becoming  more  homogeneous.*  Both 
the  Progressives  and  Conservatives,  the  latter  only 
slightly  less  than  the  former,  now  learned  to  value  ration- 
al more  than  formal  likemindedness. 

In  the  period  when  society  is  becoming  unified,  meas- 
ures of  coercion  are  necessar}^.  One  of  the  first  things, 
however,  that  a  society  whose  membership  has  become 
homogeneous  and  whose  social  mind  has  become  rational 
rather  than  formal  has  to  do  is  to  liberalize  its  organiza- 
tion. With  the  change  described  above  in  the  type  of 
likemindedness  of  the  Dunker  church  there  went  this 
change  in  the  organization.  In  the  period  previous  to 
1882  the  power  of  the  organization  had  rested  practically 
in  the  hands  of  the  StandiDg  Committee,  although  theo- 
retically in  the  Annual  Meeting,  not  in  the  membership 
of  the  church  in  the  congregations.  There  was  no  appeal 
to  right  and  legality  as  a  higher  law  than  the  law  of 
the  Scriptures  as  interpreted  by  the  traditions  of  the 
fathers.  In  the  present  period,  however,  the  conceptions 
of  a  law  that  was  higher  than  the  tradition  began  to  ap- 
pear. The  conception  of  legality  began  to  arise.  This 
conception  originated  in  the  minds  of  the  Progressives 

*Giddings,  "Democracy  and  Empire",  p.  53. 


194  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

and  their  sympathizers  among  the  Conservatives  in  the 
struggle  of  1882,  when  Henry  R.  Holsinger  was  expelled 
from  the  church  by  the  Annual  Meeting.*  Thus,  in  both 
branches  a  conception  of  a  law  above  the  will  of  the  ma- 
jority, arose  in  the  minds  of  many  of  the  Dunkers.  After 
their  separation  this  idea  continued  to  develop. 

Immediately  on  the  organization  of  the  Progressives 
they  provided  that  their  organization  should  have  a 
care  for  the  safe-guarding  of  the  rights  of  the  individ- 
ual against  the  arbitrary  power  of  the  few,  and  thus 
gave  expression  to  their  regard  for  a  legality  and  justice 
that  is  above  the  traditions  of  the  church,  f 

Among  the  Conservatives  the  progress  towards  legal- 
ity has  been  slower,  but  it  has  been  none  the  less  real. 
The  Annual  Meeting  has  never  given  expression  to  this 
conception  in  any  decision,  but  in  practice  it  has  admitted 
it,  ever  since  shortly  after  the  organization  of  the  Pro- 
gressives as  a  separate  body.  To  have  continued  the 
former  arbitrary  and  coercive  policy  would  have  driven 
thousands  of  their  members  into  the  progressive  branch 
of  the  church. 

That  the  date  1882  is  only  approximately  correct  as  the 
dividing  point  between  the  period  of  centralization  and 
the  period  of  liberalization  in  the  Dunker  church  is  indi- 
cated by  nothing  so  clearly  as  by  the  growth,  within  the 
church,  of  voluntary  associations,  such  as  colleges,  news- 
papers, missionary  societies  and  old  folks'  homes.  These 
voluntary  organizations  had  begun  with  the  rise  of  the 
first  newspaper,  the  "Gospel  Visitor,"  which  was  author  - 

*See  remarks  of  D.  C.  Moomaw,  Landon  West,  Robert  H.   Miller,  etc., 
Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers",  p  515-525. 

fSee  "Declaration  of  Principles",  in  Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers, 
etc.",  p  530  f. 


LIBERALIZATION  195 

ized  by  the  Annual  Meeting  in  1851.*  Between  that  time 
and  1882  no  less  than  14  papers,  devoted  to  the  discussion 
of  church  or  Sunday  school  questions,  and  representing 
different  tendencies  in  the  f  raternity,  arose  in  the  Dunker 
church,  f 

Moreover,  at  the  time  of  the  division  in  the  Dunker  or- 
ganization in  1882,  there  had  been  organized  four  colleges, 
one  each  in  Virginia,  Pennsylvania.  Ohio  and  Illinois. 
The  Huntington  Normal  College  at  Huntington,  Penna., 
started  in  1876,  was  the  first  of  these,  although  there  had 
been  several  abortive  attempts  made  to  organize  Dunker 
schools,  the  first  by  Jacob  Miller  in  1852  in  Pennsyl- 
vania.:]: Thus,  the  liberal  era  in  the  Dunker  church  really 
began  about  1850,  but  did  not  become  dominant  in  the 
church  until  after  1882.  From  that  time  on  the  social 
constitution  of  the  Dunker  church,  in  both  its  leading 
branches,  became  more  complex.  Organizations  of  all 
kinds  multiplied.  Among  the  Conservatives,  since  that 
time  at  least  four  more  colleges  have  been  started,  two 
more  periodicals  have  been  begun,  while  the  publishing 
interests  of  that  branch  have  become  so  prosperous  that 
each  year  there  is  about  $10,000  in  profits  to  be  devoted 
to  the  missionary  work  of  that  church. 

Before  that  date,  the  Dunker  church  had  a  small  mis- 
sion in  Denmark,  but  city  and  foreign  mission  work  in 

*"Considered,  at  this  Council,  that  we  will  not  forbid  Bro.  Henry  Kurtz 
to  go  on  with  the  paper  for  one  year;  and  that  all  the  brethren  or  churchea 
will  impartially  examine  the  Gospel  Visitor,  and  if  found  wrong  or  injur- 
ious, let  them  send  in  their  objections  at  the  next  Annual  Meeting."  In 
1853  is  found  the  last  reference  to  this  paper,  as  follows:  "In  regard  to  the 
fourth  query  of  last  year's  minutes,  concerning  the  Gospel  Visitor?  Inas- 
much as  the  Visitor  is  a  private  undertaking  of  its  editor,  we  unanimously 
conclude  that  this  Meeting  should  not  any  further  interfere  with  it."— "Clas- 
sified Minutes",  p  323.  324. 

tAll  were  published  in  English,  except  a  small  one  in  German. 

JHolsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc.,"  p  365. 


196  THE  D  TJNKEHS  IN  AMERICA 

general  was  frowned  upon.  Following  the  division  in 
1882,  the  General  Missionary  and  Tract  Committee,  was 
organized.  This  does  successful  work  in  a  number  of 
large  cities,  has  missions  in  India,  Switzerland,  Sweden, 
Denmark  and  France.  Since  then  has  originated  the  Ed- 
ucational, Sunday  School  and  Missionary  Meetings  held 
in  connection  with  the  Annual  Meeting. 

Subsequent  to  the  division  of  the  Dunker  church  oc- 
curred the  great  development  in  the  social  constitution 
of  the  local  congregation.  The  organization  of  Sunday 
schools  began  previous  to  that  time  but  by  far  the  greater 
number  have  been  organized  since.  Young  peoples'  so- 
cieties and  ladies'  aid  societies  have  originated  since  1882, 
as  well  as  local  mission  bands.  Thus,  the  social  consti- 
tution of  the  Conservative  branch  of  the  Dunker  church 
has  been  subsequent,  and  also  consequent,  to  the  liberal- 
ization of  the  social  mind  of  the  Dunkers.  As  apprecia- 
tion of  the  value  of  variety  in  their  society  grew,  the 
social  constitution  developed.* 

The  danger  of  losing  members  by  their  going  to  the 
Progressives,  forced  the  Conservatives,  shortly  after  the 
division  of  the  church  in  1882,  to  stop  short  in  their  co- 
ercion of  the  individual  in  the  interest  of  uniformity  and 
to  allow  him  more  liberty  of  action.  As  the  coercion  had 
been  limited  almost  entirely  to  securing  uniformity  in 
matters  described  by  the  phrase  "the  order  of  the 
church",  which  pertained  largely  to  dress  and  customs, 
naturally  the  liberty  allowed  was  on  this  point.  Individ- 
ual initiative  henceforth  was  allowed  a  greater  place. 

The  whole  church  was  so  affected  by  this  change  in  the 
social  mind  that  entirely  new  policies  were  adopted. 

Instead  of  meeting  with  suspicion  those  who  tried  to 
introduce  a  wider  culture  and  warning  them  that  they 

*Giddings,  "Inductive  Sociology",  p  224. 


LIBERALIZATION  m 

were  departing  from  the  ways  of  the  fathers,  the  church 
authorities  and  the  moulders  of  thought  encouraged 
them.  Perhaps,  the  most  striking  policy  that  was  now 
inaugurated  was  that  of  encouraging  a  wider  intercourse 
with  the  world,  to  which  they  had  so  long  been  strangers. 
One  of  their  foremost  men,  D.  L.  Miller,  made  several 
journeys  around  the  world  visiting  the  places  of  interest 
and  writing  of  them  in  the  denominational  paper,  the 
Gospel  Messenger.  The  articles  were  published  later  in 
book  form.  That  the  church  as  a  whole  was  animated  by 
a  new  spirit  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  his  articles  were 
the  most  popular  of  any  in  the  paper  and  that  his  books 
enjoyed,  and  still  enjoy,  a  phenomenal  sale. 

Another  result  of  this  new  phase  of  the  social  mind 
was  the  fact  that  the  schools  of  the  church  were  not  only 
encouraged,  but  were  thronged  with  Dunker  students. 
Educationally,  the  Dunker  church's  horizon  was  not 
bounded  by  its  own  schools.  The  graduates  of  these  were 
encouraged  to  seek  the  best  universities  of  this  country 
and  Europe.  The  increase  of  books  and  magazines  in 
Dunker  homes  and  the  demands  by  Dunker  congregations 
in  many  places,  especially  in  the  cities,  for  educated 
preachers  bore  witness  to  the  rapid  change  that  had  come 
over  the  policies  of  the  Dunker  church.  While  it  never 
has  avowed  a  policy  to  extend  its  intercourse  with  the 
world  about  it  and  to  be  in  favor  of  free  investigation, 
the  Dunker  church  has  practically  adopted  the  policy  of 
world-wide  intercourse.  Consequently  modern  means  of 
communication,  such  as  the  rural  mail  delivery,  the 
daily  newspaper,  the  telephone  and  the  illustrated  and 
scientific  magazine,  have  been  eagerly  adopted  by  most  of 
the  Dunker  people.*     The  fact  that  one  of  the  most  en- 

*In  1905  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Old  Order  Brethren,  the  ultra-con- 
servative party,  decided  against  telephones. 


198  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

lightened  Dunkers,  Dr.  M.  G.  Brumbaugh,  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Pennsylvania,  could  criticise  the  Dunker 
church  in  his  "History  of  the  Brethren",  in  1899,  and  yet 
enjoy  the  confidence  of  the  church  and  that  his  books 
sold  among  the  Dunkers  by  the  thousands  shows  that  the 
policy  of  harking  back  to  tradition  has  given  place  to 
that  of  free  investigation.* 

Lastly,  a  policy  of  legality  has  displaced  to  a  certain 
extent  the  policy  of  arbitrary  exercise  of  power  in  the 
conduct  of  the  Annual  Meeting,  and  in  the  conduct  of 
trials  of  members  in  most  congregations. 

The  liberalization  of  the  Dunker  church,  however,  is 
not  yet  complete.  As  the  process  began  before  the  di- 
vision in  1882,  so  the  policy  of  coercion  did  not  cease  al- 
together at  that  date.  These  periods  overlap  each  other. 
While,  on  the  whole,  liberal  policies,  and  rational  senti- 
ments dominate  the  Dunker  church  today,  all  the  respect 
for  tradition  and  all  coercion  upon  the  individual  has  not 
ceased.  But  the  Dunker  church  has  achieved  a  social 
organization  that  maintains  essential  unity  and  is  stronger 
than  it  ever  was,  while,  at  the  same  time,  it  allows  a 
greater  measure  of  individual  and  social  liberty  than 
ever  before.  Those  are  the  marks  of  a  progressive 
and  liberal  society. 

Furthermore,  in  the  Dunker  church  have  appeared  the 
beginnings  of  the  third  stage  of  social  evolution,  socioc- 
racy,  by  which  is  meant  the  stage  in  the  development  of 
a  constituent  society  which  corresponds  to  democracy  in 
an  integral  society. 

This  was  brought  about  by  the  same  causes  in  both 
cases.  The  liberal  stage  gave  rise  to  individual  initiative 
and  allowed  the  Dunkers  to  adopt  the  best  methods  of  or- 
ganization, the  best  inventions  both  in  their  church  work 

*"History  of  the  Brethren",  p  505  f .  526,  539,  543,  546  f. 


LIBERALIZATION  199 

and  in  their  homes  and  business.  That  gave  rise  to  in- 
crease of  the  Dunker  wealth  and  also  Dunker  population. 
The  liberalization  of  the  Dunker  organization,  the  broad- 
ening of  the  Dunker  mind  with  the  consequent  modifica- 
tion of  Dunker  customs,  thought  and  policies,  resulted 
in  a  great  increase  in  the  membership  apart  from  natural 
growth.  It  made  possible  a  successful  appeal  to  people 
that  had  not  been  raised  Dunker s  and  this  led  to  com- 
plexity of  the  Dunker  membership.  This  process  is  still 
going  on. 

Socia]  selection  is  at  work  on  the  Dunker  population, 
determining  the  physical  and  psychical  classes  and  thus 
preparing  for  a  further  development  of  the  social  mind. 
The  Dunker  church  has  not  reached  the  stage  of  social 
development  represented  by  American  society  as  a  whole, 
but  under  the  influence  both  of  the  environing  society 
and  also  of  causes  operating  within  itself,  it  is  rapidly 
evolving  toward  such  a  stage. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


Present  Conditions  in  the  Dunker  Church. 

1.  Numbers, 

In  1770  there  were  fifteen  congregations  of  Dunkersin 
Pennsylvania,  with  a  membership  of  663,  one  in  New 
Jersey  with  46  members,  a  total  of  709  members  in  six- 
teen congregations.  If  the  seventeen  churches  in  Mary- 
land and  the  other  southern  colonies  had  as  high  an  aver- 
age membership  as  these,  which  is  hardly  likely,  since 
they  were  newer  congregations,  than  in  1790  there  were 
not  more  than  1462  members  in  the  territory  now 
included  in  the  United  States.* 

It  would  be  interesting  to  know  the  number  of  Dun- 
kers  in  different  parts  of  the  country  during  the  period 
between  the  Revolutionary  War  and  1880,  but  there  was 
no  census  of  the  Dunkers,  until  1880,  when  Howard 
Miller  was  appointed  to  prepare  one.  His  results  to- 
gether with  all  other  available  information  is  gathered  to- 
gether in  the  following  table.  It  shows  the  entire  Dunker 
population  in  1880  and  1890,  the  numbers  and  distribution 
of  the  Progressives  in  1905,  and  gives  an  indication  of 
the  distribution  of  the  Conservatives  in  that  year. 

Numbers  and  geographical  Distribution  of  the  Dunker 
Population  in  the  United  States : 

States    United  States       Howard  Miller's      fProgressives,         Conserva- 
Censusofl890        Census  of  1880  in     "Statistical  Re-      tives, 

"Record  of  the        port'',  1905,  by  Number  of 

Faithful",  p  64.  Mrs.  A.  H.  Lichty  Gospel  Mes- 
sengers tak- 
en in  April, 
1905.* 

Alabama 20 

Alaska 

*Morgan  Edwards,  "Materials  towards  a  History  of  the  Baptists  in  Jer- 
sey", p  385  f . 
■[Canada  has  12  members.     The  Report  is  unpublished. 
JSee,  Gospel  Messenger,  April  29,  1905. 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  201 


Arizona 

Arkansas,  82, 

California,  290, 

Colorado,  127, 

Connecticut 

Delaware 

District  of 

Columbia 

Forida  41, 

Georgia 

Idaho,  40, 

Illinois,  4,119, 

Indiana,  12,350, 

Indian  Territory,       27, 
Iowa,  3,470, 

Kansas,  4,067, 

Kentucky,  13, 

Louisiana,  17, 

Maine 

Maryland,  2,964, 

Massachusetts  

Michigan,  '  844, 

Minnesota,  104, 

Mississippi 

Missouri,  2,090, 

Montana  

Nebraska,  1>441, 

Nevada 

New  Hampshire 

New  Jersey,  191, 

New  Mexico 

New  York 

North  Carolina,       525, 

North  Dakota 

Ohio,  11,798, 

Oklahoma,  46, 

Oregon,  280, 

Pennsylvania,      16,707, 

Rhode  Island 

South  Carolina 

South  Dakota,  102, 

Tennessee,  1,249, 


20,  .... 
211, 
80,  .... 

310, 

20 

64 

387 

182 

88, 

67 

19 

2 

201 

4,407, 
10,237, 

686, 
3,275; 

1.532 

3,148 

27 

3,056, 

2,358, 

841, 
615, 

1,221 

1,459 

5 

41 

1 

2,604, 

550, 

843 
1 

659, 

129,  .... 

220, 

326 

160 

4 

1,309, 

12, 

653 
16 

620, 

439, 

444 

302, 

101, 

24 
1 

43 

28s, 

96 

9, 
2,443, 

411 

9,362 

2,814 
29© 

200,  

191 

14,557, 

3,357, 

4,058 

12 

8 

1,088, 

12, 

212 

202  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

Texas,                         95,                               12,     96 

Utah 2 

Vermont 1 

Virginia,                7,244,                         4,965,                          880,  1819 

Washington,              26,        97,  185 

West  Virginia,     3,216,                         1,587,                           180,  473 

Wisconsin,                199,        71 

Wyoming,                  21,        4 

Total  73,795,  59,749,  14,117, 

Dr.  Carroll,  in  his  "Statistics  of  the  Churches"  pub- 
lished in  the  Christian  Advocate,  January  5, 1905  presents 
the  following  table: 

Dunkards  Ministers  Churches  Communicants 

1.  Conservatives,  2,775                      900                          95,000 

2.  Old  Order,  213                        75                           4,000 

3.  Progressives  265                      144                         15,000 

4.  Seventh  Day 

(German)  5  6  194 

Total  3,258  1,125  114,194 

This  summary  is  a  relatively  close  estimate  based  upon 
reports  sent  in  by  the  Conservatives.  It  throws  no  light 
on  the  distribution  of  the  Dunkers.  It  is  valuable  only 
for  the  light  it  throws  upon  the  relative  strength  of  the 
four  branches. 

In  1890  there  was  a  total  membership  in  the  four 
branches  of  73,795  in  989  organizations.  Compared  with 
the  estimate  of  their  numbers  a  century  before,  this 
shows  a  rapid  increase  of  membership.  It  also  shows 
that,  whereas  the  average  size  of  a  congregation  in  1780 
was  44  i  members,  in  1890  the  average  was  74  f .  In  1905, 
according  to  Dr.  Carroll's  figures,  the  average  congrega- 
tion had  increased  to  101  i  members. 

A  glance  over  the  combined  table  given  above  shows 
where  growth  has  been  vigorous.  The  states  in  which 
were  the  greatest  numbers  of  Dunkers  in  1890  were 
Pennsylvania,  16,707;  Indiana,  12,350;  Ohio,  11,798;  Vir- 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  203 

ginia,  7,244;  Illinois,  4,119;  Kansas,  4,067;  Iowa,  3,470. 
Perhaps  the  most  striking  thing  that  the  table  shows  is 
the  remarkable  increase  since  1880.  The  phenomena  of 
of  this  period  in  the  history  of  the  Dunker  church  cor- 
responds with  the  phenomena  that  are  found  in  the  his- 
tory of  nations  in  the  period  of  civilization  that  follows 
the  development  from  the  military-religious  stage  into 
the  liberal-legal.*  In  both  cases  the  period  is  marked  by, 
a  great  increase  in  population  and  a  very  pronounced 
development  in  culture  and  organization. 

2.     The  Social  Mind  of  the  Bunkers, 

To  the  stimulus  of  economic  opportunity  and  of  politi- 
cal and  religious  freedom  in  America,  the  Dunker s  re- 
sponded in  much  the  same  way  as  their  German  fellows 
of  like  faith,  the  Mennonites.  Likewise,  the  newer  por- 
tions of  America  at  a  later  time  presented  the  economic 
opportunities  that  drew  the  Dunkers  thither  very  early 
and  in  great  numbers.  Today  the  Dunkers  are  like  their 
ancestors  in  their  ready  response  to  the  stimulus  of  eco- 
nomic advantages.  They  are  practical  men,  farmers  for 
the  most  part,  ever  alive  to  their  business  interests,  and 
quick  to  seize  any  new  opportunity  offered. 

Among  themselves  mental  and  practiced  resemblance 
is  very  highly  developed. 

Their  appreciation  is  keen  in  all  matters  that  pertain 
to  agriculture,  and  less  keen  in  affairs  that  do  not  touch 
their  immediate  interests.  Thus,  in  agriculture  and 
stock  raising  they  are  alive  to  the  greatest  discoveries. 
They  buy  the  best  and  most  improved  machinery,  take 
the  latest  and  best  farm  papers,  and  attend  the  county 
and  state  fairs  in  order  to  keep  abreast  with  all  that  is 
best  in  the  world  in  which  they  are  concerned.  In  mat- 
ters of  education  and   science,   they   are  content  with 

*Giddings,  "Elements  of  Sociology",  p  290  f. 


204  THE  D  UNKEBS  IN  AMERICA 

theories  that  have  been  outgrown  for  almost  a  century. 
Within  the  last  ten  years,  however,  there  has  begun  a 
veritable  renaissance  among  them.  Many  of  their  young 
men  have  been  seized  with  a  great  passion  for  education, 
new  theories  of  the  universe  have  been  finding  adherents 
among  them.  Anew  world  has  been  opened  up  to  them 
through  such  men  as  D.  L*.  Miller  with  his  books  on 
travel,  and  M.  G.  Brumbaugh  with  his  modern  theories 
of  education.  Their  appreciation  of  the  great  world  in 
which  they  live  has  been  cultivated  by  their  contact  with 
the  other  social  elements  in  a  society  that  has  gradually 
been  growing  more  cultured  and  liberal.  Travel,  schools, 
good  books,  periodicals  and  all  the  influences  of  modern 
American  civilization  have  destroyed  in  a  measure  their 
isolation,  widened  their  experience,  and  developed  their 
appreciation.* 

As  farmers  and  business  men  the  Dunkers  have  ever 
been  what  are  termed  practical  men.  That  mode  of 
practical  activity  known  as  utilization  has  been  very 
highly  developed.  They  possess  the  skill  of  thirty  five 
generations  of  practice  in  farming.  Their  patient  persis- 
tence, combined  with  skill  and  frugality,  conquered  the 
wilderness,  wherever  they  settled,  and  has  earned  them 
the  reputation  of  being  the  best  farmers  in  the  world,  t 
Among  the  Dunker  farmers,  there  is  less  poverty  than 
among  the  members  of  any  other  denominations  of  Christ- 
ians, unless  it  be  among  the  Mennonites,  themselves 
German  farmers. 

Moreover,  in  their  religion  they  have  been  nothing,  if 
not  practical.  Their  religion  has  to  do  with  ecclesiastical 
policies  and  personal  ethics,  not  with  theology.     Pietism 

*Cf.  the  discussions  in  the  Gospel  Messenger  in  1885,  for  example,   with 
those  in  the  same  paper  in  1905. 

fKuhns,  ''German  and  Swiss  Settlements  of  Colonial  Pennsylvania",  p  85. 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  205 

has  ever  been  practical  activity  rather  than  dogmatics. 
The  Dunkers  in  this  particular  are  true  to  their  pietistic 
origin. 

The  Dunker  type  of  disposition  should  probably  be 
called  domineering.  This  type  of  disposition  reveals 
itself  in  the  reverence  that  is  required  to  be  paid  to  the 
older  members,  to  the  governing  officials  of  the  congrega- 
tion, and  to  any  authority  whatsoever,  either  in  church 
or  state,  which  does  not  oppress  them  in  matters  of 
conscience.  The  old  man,  the  wealthy  man,  the  success- 
ful man  has  always  been  reverenced  among  them.  When 
once  the  church  has  spoken  in  the  Annual  Meeting,  it 
becomes  the  duty  of  every  member  to  render  obedience 
to  the  decision.  When  a  local  congregation  has  expressed 
its  mind  on  a  matter,  it  is  in  bad  taste,  to  say  the  least, 
for  anyone  to  question  the  result.  This  disposition  has 
played  a  large  part  in  the  history  of  the  denomination. 
It  made  possible  the  imposition  of  the  policy  of  coercion 
upon  so  large  a  part  of  the  Dunker  body  for  so  long  a 
time.  It  determined  the  sort  of  leaders  that  the  Dunker 
church  has  produced, — men  of  the  domineering  type, 
who  ruled  by  coercion  rather  than  by  their  superior 
^mental  and  moral  qualities.* 

Deeply  religious,  the  Dunkers  are  not  of  the  rationally 
conscientious,  but  rather  of  the  austere,  type  of  charac- 
ter. All  their  history  has  been  a  protest  against  the  evils 
they  saw  in  the  great  churches  about  them.     They  have 

*See  Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkers,  etc."',  p  473  f.  The  principle 
set  forth  in  Matthew  18:17,  "And  if  he  (a  brother  in  the  church,  who  has 
wronged  you)  will  not  hear  the  church,  let  him  be  unto  thee  as  a  heathen 
man  and  a  publican",  has  been  the  controlling-  principle  in  the  thought  of 
the  Dunker  church,  as  to  how  a  man  should  be  "dealt  with"  after  the  high- 
est authority  has  spoken.  That  that  is  the  last  word,  and  that  its  use  is 
very  frequent  is  shown  by  a  glance  over  the  pages  of  the  minutes  of  the 
Annual  Meeting.  The  phrase,  "let  him  be  dealt  with  according  to  Matthew 
18:17"  occurs  so  often  that  it  becomes  wearisome.  .  h 


m  THE  D  UNKEBS  IJSF  AMERICA 

always  been  opposed  to  worldly  forms  of  amusement,  and 
have  considered  themselves  a  reforming  party  in  Pro- 
testant Christianity.  They  opposed  slavery,  and  have 
taken  advanced  ground  on  intemperance  and  the  use  of 
tobacco.*  All  the  Minutes  of  the  Annual  Meeting  on 
practical  piety  show  the  austere  type  of  character.  In 
the  Dunkers  today  we  find  the  same  persistence  and  the 
same  faithfulness  to  what  they  conceive  to  be  duty 
as  characterized  their  forbears  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. Among  new  and  hostile  surroundings,  but  protect- 
ed by  social  isolation,  they  have  clung  to  their  beliefs,  in 
spite  of  the  sneers  of  other  Christian  denominations. 

*These  examples  from  the  minutes  of  their  Annual  Meeting,  cast  an  in- 
teresting light  upon  their  attitude: 

"Art.  2,  1781. — Concerning  distilleries,  we  heartily  counsel  all  brethren, 
who  have  distilleries,  that  they  should  by  all  means  endeavor  to  put  them 
away,  in  order  to  escape  from  the  evil  so  often  arising  from  them,  and  to 
avoid  offence,  and  in  this  the  brethren  are  still  entirely  united  with  the 
conclusion  made  at  Pipe  Creek,  three  years  ago." 

"Art.  12,  1895.— We  the  brethren  of  Beaver  Creek  congregation,  petition 
Annual  Meeting  through  District  Meeting  of  Western  Maryland,  to  say 
what  shall  be  done  in  case  a  brother  is  appointed  to  act  as  gauger,  or  store- 
keeper at  a  distillery,  and  has  been  requested  to  resign,  but  refuses  to  re- 
linquish his  office?  Ans. — If  the  brother  refuses  to  resign,  he  shall  be  dealt 
with  according  to  Matt.  18:17.  See  Eph.  5:11  and  1  Thess.  5:22."  These 
are  only  two  of  a  number  of  decisions  relating  to  the  liquor  traffic  from  1778, 
the  Minutes  of  which  year  is  the  earliest  we  possess,  down  to  the  present 
time. 

Their  position  on  tobacco  is  well  indicated  by  the  following  decision  of 
the  Annual  Meeting: 

"Art.  1,  1817. — Concerning  the  use  of  tobacco,  it  was  in  union  considered, 
that  if  a  member  should  be  contaminated  with  it,  such  should  be  admonished 
to  quit  it ;  and  if  he  would  not  be  told,  such  a  member  could  not  be  elected  to 
any  office  in  the  church." 

"Art.  7,  1896.— (Salem  Church,  Southern  District  of  Ohio).  We  petition 
Annual  Meeting  through  District  Meeting,  to  reconsider  Art.  10  of  Minutes 
of  Annual  Meeting  of  1889,  and  so  amend,  that  no  delegate  to  Annual  Meet- 
ing or  to  District  Meeting,  or  member  of  the  Standing  Committee,  be  ac- 
cepted as  such,  who  uses,  raises,  buys  or  sells  tobacco.  Ans. — We  grant 
petition  asked  for.  "—"Classified  Minutes, "  p  284,  285,  297;  "Revised  Min- 
utes," p  158  f,  163  f. 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  207 

In  type  of  mind  the  Dunkers  are  dogmatic-emotional. 
They  have  held  themselves  so  strictly  to  their  ideas,  and 
have  been  so  earnest  with  their  convictions  that  they  have 
been  intolerant  of  others.  This  has  gone  to  such  lengths 
that  many  of  them  believe  that  theirs  is  the  only  true 
church  of  Christ.  This  is  not  often  asserted  in  so  bold 
a  fashion,  and  direct^  confronted  with  the  question,  they 
generally  hedge.*  They  are  driven  to  that  position  by 
the  logic  of  their  beliefs.  With  them,  reasoning  in  mat- 
ers religious,  has  been  habitually  deductive. 

This  type  of  mind,  in  connection  with  their  austere 
type  of  character  has  produced  martyrs  among  them.  As 
a  single  example,  Christopher  Sauer,  the  Germantown 
printer,  allowed  himself  to  be  despoiled  of  all  his  prop- 
erty, which  was  considerable  for  that  day?  and  to  be  dub- 
bed a  traitor  to  the  country,  because  he  could  not  take 
the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  new  state  of  Pennsylvania, 
at  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  War.f  It  was  not  be- 
cause he  was  opposed  to  the  state,  or  because  he  was  a 

*This  attitude  has  been  characteristic  of  them  from  the  very  first.  Thus, 
when  Gruber  put  the  question  squarely  to  Mack  in  Germany  in  the  first 
years  of  the  history  of  the  sect,  "How  shall  we  know,  beyond  all  doubt, 
that  your  new  denomination,  above  all  others,  is  to  be  recognized  as  the 
true  church?",  Mack  answered,  "We  have  no  new  denomination  and  no 
new  ordinances,  but  simply  desire  to  live  in  the  old  church  which  Christ 
established  through  the  virtue  of  his  own  blood,  and  obey  the  command- 
ment which  was  from  the  beginning;  and  it  is  not  our  desire  to  appear  be- 
fore men  as  the  only  established  church  of  Christ;  but  we  do  anxiously  de- 
sire to  show  forth  undaunted  godliness  by  the  grace  and  power  of  Christ,  as 
it  was  in  Christ  himself  and  in  the  church  at  Jerusalem.  And,  if  we  can 
succeed  in  setting  forth  the  institutions  of  Christ  and  of  the  original  church 
in  a  godly  life  and  by  holy  conversations,  and  in  keeping  his  ordinances,  it 
appears  to  us  that  that  should  be  sufficient  to  show  to  all  men  that  we  are 
the  true  church  of  Christ,  But  whosoever  cannot  recognize  Christ  in  the 
holiness  of  his  commandments  would  not  be  able  to  recognize  the  church  of 
Christ,  even  if  the  twelve  apostles  were  among  them.— Holsinger,  "History 
of  the  Tunkers,  etc.",  p  70;  Cf.  "Classified  Minutes",  passim. 

TSee  "Colonial  Records",  Index,  "Christopher  Sauer." 


208  THE  B  UNKER8  IN  AMERICA 

Tory  at  heart,  but  because  he  was  conscientiously  opposed 
to  taking  an  oath.  It  is  this  type  of  mind,  with  its  ac- 
companying disposition  and  character,  that  has  had  much 
to  do  in  bringing  this  eighteenth  century  sect  of  Chris- 
tians down  into  the  twentieth  century,  not  enfeebled, 
like  the  Quakers,  but  strong  and  vigorous,  and,  so  far  as 
one  can  see,  with  a  future  before  them. 

Before  they  left  Germany,  consciousness  of  kind  among 
the  Dunkers  had  become  a  strong  affection  for 
those  of  experiences  and  sentiments  like  their  own. 
Their  common  sufferings  and  their  organization  prompted 
its  further  development.  In  Germantown  the  pro- 
cess was  repeated.  Their  history  in  America  has 
further  developed  their  consciousness  of  kind.  Today, 
having  acted  from  common  purposes  so  long  under  a 
closely  unified  organization,  consciousness  of  kind  is 
more  highly  developed  than  among  any  other  religious 
body  of  which  I  know.  It  extends  even  to  economic 
affairs.  In  any  Dunker  community  it  always  pays  the 
merchant  to  secure  some  Dunker  to  clerk  in  his  store, 
in  order  to  draw  Dunker  trade.  It  extends  even  to  the 
various  bodies  of  the  Dunker  bodty.  There  is  more  of 
the  consciousness  of  kind  among  the  various  kinds  of 
Dunkers  than  there  is  among  Dunkers  and  non-Dunkers, 
of  whatsoever  race  or  religion.  To  be  known  as  a  mem- 
ber of  any  branch  of  the  Dunker  church  is  of  great  ad- 
vantage today  to  merchants  that  desire  Dunker  trade. 
There  is  a  large  mail-order  house,  for  example,  in  one  of 
our  large  cities  that  gets  most  of  the  mail-order  business 
of  the  Dunkers,  simply  because  some  of  the  proprietors 
are  Dunkers.  Moreover,  any  project  in  which  Dunkers 
are  interested,  or  which  they  recommend,  is  sure  to 
secure  the  patronage  of  the  Dunkers.     Such  enterprises 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  209 

as  farm  colonies,  investment  companies,  mines  and  man- 
ufacturing concerns  are  examples. 

Through  the  control  of  so  strong  a  consciousness  of 
kind,  and  through  the  moulding  influences  both  of  sim- 
ilar physical  and  social  stimuli,  and  of  intimate  acquaint- 
ance and  association,  continued  for  so  Long  a  period,  the 
Dunkers  have  learned  to  will  the  same  things  and  to  act 
together. 

Nothing  can  illustrate  the  Danker  type  of  mind  so  well 
as  a  survey  of  the  present  state  of  culture  among  them, 
and  the  doctrines  that  are  binding  upon  them  today. 

Education, 

For  many  years  after  their  arrival  in  this  country  the 
Dunkers  cared  little  about  education.  The  Germantown 
congregation  were  in  a  degree  an  exception,  and  it  ap- 
pears that  Christopher  Sauer  and  his  son,  Christopher, 
Jr.,  made  the  exception.  The  elder  Sauer  was  a  univer- 
sity man  in  Germany,  a  graduate  of  Marburg.*  It  is 
true  that  Mack  and  Beissel  were  interested  in  literary 
work  of  the  religious  sort,  but  they  were  self-taught  and 
only  by  accommodation  of  language  could  they  be  called 
educated  men.  It  is  true  that  in  their  time  the  common 
people  of  Germany-  had  a  wider  access  to  the  sources  of 
knowledge  than  they  had  before  the  Reformation.  Fur- 
thermore, the  sectarianism  of  their  age  made  necessary 
a  kind  of  education  in  dialectics  and  church  history,  but 
like  most  of  the  information  that  a  man  "picks  up",  it 
was  not  an  ordered  knowledge.  Moreover,  the  quicken- 
ing of  the  intellectual  life,  characteristic  of  the  post- 
Reformation  period  was  not  shared  by  the  Dunkers  to  a 
very  great  degree.  Mack  and  Hochmann,  together  with 
others,  had  edited  the  Berleberg  Bible.  Sauer  set  up  in 
1738,  the  first  printing  press  in  America  to  print  in  Ger- 

*Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren",  p  345. 


210  THE  D  UNKER8  IN  AMERICA 

man,  and  therebj^  created  opportunity  for  the  develop- 
ment of  literary  activity  of  a  sort  amongst  the  Dunkers 
of  German  town.  He  himself  wrote  the  copy  for  most  of 
his  publications.  Alexander  Mack,  Jr.,  was  a  famous 
hymn  writer,  as  well  as  the  author  of  many  polemical 
works  in  defence  of  Dunker  doctrines.  Beissel  and  many 
of  his  fellow  members  at  Ephrata  wrote  German  hymns, 
besides  other  kinds  of  religious  literature,  and  about 
1745  they  had  established  a  press.  Yet  it  cannot  be  said 
that  the  early  Dunkers  favored  education. 

To  Christopher  Sauer,  Jr.,  however,  belongs  the  honor, 
so  far  as  the  Dunkers  are  concerned,  of  promoting  high 
schools  in  the  early  days.  In  1759  he  helped  to  raise 
money  for  the  building  of  the  Germantown  Academy,  and 
was  one  of  its  trustees  for  many  years.  He  was  twice 
chosen  president  of  the  board.  His  father  was  opposed 
to  an  educated  ministry.* 

Beissel' s  Community  took  steps  to  provide  instruction 
for  the  young  of  the  vicinity  at  a  time  when  no  schools 
existed  in  that  part  of  the  wilderness.  The  "Chronicon 
Ephratense"  says  that  many  families  in  Philadelphia  and 
other  colonial  cities  sent  their  children  to  Ephrata  to  be  ed- 
ucated. In  1748  Lud wig  Hoecker,  who,  after  the  revival  at 
Germantown  had  left  the  Germantown  Dunkers  and  joined 
Beissel's  Community,  started  a  Sabbath  school,  with  a 
purpose  similar  to  that  which  later  on  moved  Robert 
Raikes  in  England  to  open  a  Sunday  school,  the  purpose 
being  to  instruct  the  young  in  the  elementary  branches 
of  learning.  This  school  was  continued  until  the  battle 
of  Brandy  wine,  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  when  the  room 
was  taken  for  hospital  services.  It  was  never  opened 
afterwards.  Peter  Miller,  the  successor  of  Beissel  at 
Ephrata,  was  a  university  man  from   Germany,   and  the 

*Brumbaugh,  loc.  cit.,  p  251,  411;  Sauer's  "Almanacs",  passim. 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  211 

most  learned  man  in  the  Province  in  his  time.  He  gave 
impetus  to  the  religious-literary  activity  at  Ephrata. 
Nevertheless,  when  the  story  of  this  activity  is  all  told, 
all  is  told  about  education  in  the  Dunker  church  for  al- 
most a  hundred  years.  The  emphasis  of  general  opinion 
among  the  Dunker s  was  all  on  the  foolishness  of  human 
learning.* 

Holsinger  tells  us  that  already  in  1850  the  movement 
had  been  started  by  a  few  friends  of  education  in  the 
church.  It  gained  momentum  through  the  following 
years,  in  the  manner  already  described  in  Chapter  V,  in 
spite  of  the  adverse  decisions*  of  the  Annual  meeting. 
Today  there  are  within  the  Dunker  church  at  least  seven 
schools  and  colleges  of  a  higher  order  than  the  public 
grammer  schools,  besides  the  one  in  the  progressive 
branch,  t 

*"Classified  Minutes",  p  299-301.— Here  is  the  first  decision  to  be  found 
among  the  published  Minutes  of  the  Annual  Meeting  on  the  subject  of  ed- 
ucation. It  is  from  the  year  1831:  "Whether  it  was  considered  advisable 
for  a  member  to  have  his  son  educated  in  a  college?  Considered  not  advis- 
able, inasmuch  as  experience  has  taught  that  3uch  very  .seldom  will  come 
back  afterwards  to  the  humbie  ways  of  the  Lord".  Here  is  one  in  refer- 
ence to  high  schools,  from  the  year  1852:  i4How  is  it  considered  by  breth- 
ren, if  brethren  aid  and  assist  in  building  great  houses  for  high  schools, 
and  send  their  children  to  the  same?  Considered  that  brethren  should  be 
very  cautious  and  not  mind  high  tilings  but  condescend  to  men  of  low  es- 
tate. Rom.  12:15". 

Finally,  one  from  1857:  '"What  are  the  views  of  the  present  Annual 
Council  in  regard  to  the  contemplated  school,  that  was  alluded  to  some 
time  since  in  the  Gospel  Visitor?  Ans.— It  is  conforming  to  the  world. 
The  Apostle  Paul  says:  'Knowledge  puffeth  up,  but  charity  edifieth"'. 

TThese  seven  are  as  follows:  Huntington  Normal  School,  Huntington, 
Penn.,  1875,  now  Juniata  College;  MoPherson  College,  McPherson,  Kans., 
1877;  Ashiand  College,  Ashland,  Ohio,  1878,  which  is  now  owned  by  the 
Progressives;  Mt.  Morris  College,  Mb.  Morris,  111.,  1879;  Bridgewater  Col- 
lege, Bridgewater,  Va.,  1830;  Lordsburg  College,  Lordsburg,  Calif.,  1891; 
Plattsburg  College,  Plattsburg,  Mo. ,  1897;  North  Manchester  College,  North 
Manchester,  Ind.,  1895. 


812  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

The  men  that  favored  colleges  a  generation  ago  were 
those  who,  from  1870  on,  gave  the  denomination  much 
trouble  by  their  stand  on  the  question  of  dress  and  on 
the  nature  of  the  decisions  of  the  Annual  Meeting. 
After  the  crisis  was  passed  in  1882,  when  the  Old  Order 
Brethren  and  the  Progressives  left  the  church,  the  Con- 
servatives did  nothing  further  towards  buying  or  build- 
ing new  colleges  until  1891.  By  that  time  the  church 
had  finished  her  reorganization,  made  necessary  by  the 
struggle  through  which  she  had  gone,  and  from  that 
time  to  the  present  the  educational  movement  in  general 
has  been  gaining  much  headway  among  the  Dunker  peo- 
ple. The  movement  is  one  indication  of  the  change  that 
is  slowly  but  surely  taking  place  in  the  type  of  mind 
among  the  Dunkers. 

Throwing  an  interesting  side  light  upon  the  Dunker 
type  of  mind  is  the  fact  that  from  Christopher  Sauer,  Jr. 
and  Alexander  Mack,  Jr.,  to  the  end  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  the  Dunker  church  did  not  produce  one  man  of 
commanding  genius,  or  one  that  contributed  in  any  re- 
markable way  to  the  thought  or  welfare  of  the  nation. 
Good  men  she  produced  in  great  numbers,  but  of  men 
with  breadth  of  vision,  of  national,  to  say  nothing  of 
world-wide  sympathy,  or,  of  far-seeing  constructive 
ability,  there  is  no  sign,  until  the  times  of  men  now  liv- 
ing. But  within  the  last  twenty-five  years,  men  of  con- 
siderable promise  have  appeared  among  them.  Two  of 
the  most  prominent  among  these  are  D.  L.  Miller,  author 
and  traveler,  to  whose  wise  foresight  and  splendid  devo- 
tion is  due  much  of  the  success  of  the  church  in  the  last 
quarter  of  a  century,  and  M.  G.  Brumbaugh,  Professor 
of  Pedagogy  in  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  who  is 
prominent  in  educational  circles  in  Pennsylvania.  These 
two  are  modern  men  in  the  best  sense  of  the  term.  There 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  ns 

are  -an  increasing  number  among  the  Dunkers  that  have 
had  the  advantages  of  the  best  university  education  in 
this  country  and  a  few  that  have  taken  degrees  in  Europe. 

The  progressive  branch  has  been  occupied  with  the 
work  of  reorganizing  congregations,  of  paying  the  debts 
on  her  college  and  publishing  house,  and  of  building 
churches  and  supplying  the  congregations  with  preachers 
during  this  time.  It  has  not  yet  had  time  to  show  what 
it  may  be  capable  of  in  the  production  of  great  men. 
Nevertheless,  the  attitude  of  the  Progressives  towards 
education  has  ever  been  friendly.  The  type  of  mind 
found  among  them  is  much  more  liberal. 

Of  the  whole  Dunker  movement,  truth  compels  one  to 
say  that  it  has  brought  forth  no  great  literary  men,  and 
no  statesman.  No  great  poet,  or  philosopher,  or  educa- 
tor was  born  or  bred  among  the  Dunkers  during  the  first 
one  hundred  and  fifty  years  of  their  history.  But  the 
Dunkers  have  produced  a  great  mediocre  class  of  sub- 
stantial, worldly-wise,  industrious,  economical,  peaceful, 
moral  and  religious  citizens,  possessed  of  more  than  the 
common  virtues,  and  with  few  vices.  They  have  built 
up,  in  a  new  land,  worthy  communities  that  feared  God, 
were  strictly  honest,  very  hospitable,  and  have  set  an 
example  of  upright  and  strong  manhood  and  womenhood. 

The  Dunker  attitude  towards  education  from  1790  to 
1850,  was  due  in  part  to  oppostion  they  encountered  from 
those  that  were  educated ;  in  part,  tc  their  frontier  life 
and  partly  to  the  influence  of  tradition  hostile  to  educa- 
tion. Having  arrived  in  America,  the  Dunkers  were  con- 
firmed in  their  narrowest  beliefs  and  their  dogmatic  tra- 
ditionalism by  the  isolation  of  their  wilderness  life. 

However,  as  the  wilderness  began  to  blossom  and  set- 
tlements to  grow  together,  as  towns  sprang  up,  knowl- 
edge spread ;  as  school  houses  began  to  dot  the  hills,  as 


m  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

the  printing  press  brought  to  Dunker  homes  a  part  of  the 
pulsing  thought  of  the  great  world  about  them,  introduc- 
ing, at  first,  into  their  methods  of  farming  reason  instead 
of  tradition;*  as  travel  to  and  from  the  old  home  in  the 
East  gave  contact  with  other  men  and  other  thoughts, 
upon  some  there  began  to  dawn  a  recognition  of  certain 
elements  of  superiority  in  those  whom  they  had  been 
taught  to  consider  as  uthe  world".  These  carried  back 
the  light  into  the  less  open  regions,  and  an  ideal  of  ration- 
al science  as  opposed  to  dogmatic  tradition,  an  ideal  of 
liberty  as  contrasted  with  the  ideal  of  unity,  began  to 
make  its  appeal.  Then  began  the  conflict  of  ideals  that 
resulted  in  the  ruptures  of  1880-1882.  After  the  break, 
familiarity  with  differences  led  to  toleration,  and  among 
both  the  Conservatives  and  Progressives,  toleration  to 
liberty. 

The  Dunker  Doctrines. 

Perhaps  even  more  striking  illustrations  of  the  Dunker 
type  of  mind  than  their  attitude  towards  education,  are 
their  positions  on  theological  and  ecclesiastical  questions. 

In  the  earliest  period,  as  we  have  seen,  most  of  the 
Dunker  doctrines  were  copies,  or  modifications,  of  those 
that  were  current  among  the  sects  of  Europe.  Their  ten- 
ets" today  are  the  same  as  then,  except  as  they  have 
been  affected  by  new  circumstances. 

In  the  strictly  theological  meaning  of  the  term  the 
Dunkers  today,  as  in  the  early  period  of  their  history, 
have  no  doctrines.  The  decisions  of  the  Annual  Meet- 
ing, the  only  official  pronouncements  on  any  matter  what- 
soever, are  not  concerned  with  theological  questions,  but 

*For  example,  until  the  modern  era  among-  them,  the  crops  were  planted, 
and  all  the  vzork  of  the  farms  was  governed  by  superstitious  signs  that  had 
been  handed  down  to  them  from  their  ancestors,  instead  of  by  the  princi- 
ples of  scientific  farming.  But  today  they  are  the  most  scientific  farmers 
in  the  world. 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  215 

with  conduct,  organization  and  questions  of  ecclesiastical 
policy.  The  Dunkers  have  not  declared  themselves  on 
the  doctrine  of  God,  of  Man,  of  Sin,  and  of  Redemption. 
Nothing  could  bring  this  out  more  clearly  than  to  glance 
over  a  list  of  the  subjects  on  which  the  Annual  Meeting 
has  rendered  decisions.*  In  looking  over  such  a  list  in 
the  Index  of  the  Revised   Minutes   the   reader   notices 

*Tbe  following  list  from  the  Index  of  the  "Revised  Minutes  of  the  An- 
nual Meeting1, "  which  are  supposed  to  be  in  force  among  them  today  reveals 
the  type  of  mind  that  still  controls  the  Dunkers: 

"Accusations  against  elders;  Acting  as  administrators  of  estates;  Adul- 
terers; Affirmation,  objectionable  forms  of;  Ancient  order  of  the  church, 
violation  of;  Animal  shows,  attending;  Anointing  (the  sick  with  oil);  Arb- 
itrations, serving  at;  Ardent  spirits;  Arms,  bearing;  Assesssor,  serving  as; 
Attorney,  hiring  one;  Authors,  playing;  Avoidance;  Banking,  brethren 
engaging  in;  Banks,  acting  as  directors  of;  Beard,  style  of  wearing;  Bells 
on  meeting  houses;  Buying  county  bonds;  Bonnets  for  sisters;  Costly  bur- 
ial cases;  Cape  for  sisters;  Playing  cards;  Sunday  school  celebrations; 
Playing  checkers;  Holding  office  under  the  civil  government;  Clothing, 
plain  and  fashionable;  Coat  collar,  standing;  Public  collections  (in  the 
church);  Serving  as  constable;  Petitioning  Congress;  Gospel  Conversion 
necessary;  Distilleries;  Divorced  parsons;  Dress;  Getting  drunk;  Wearing 
earrings  at  lovefeasts;  Excommunication;  Pairs;  Fasting;  Order  of  faith 
and  repentence;  Following  worldly  fashion;  Using  fiddles;  Fines  for  mili- 
tary service;  Freemasons;  Playing  games;  Delegates  (to  Annual  Meeting) 
wearing  gold;  The  Gospel  a  perfect  law;  Attitude  to  the  government; 
Ways  of  wearing  the  hair;  Wearing  modest  hats;  Hunting  on  Sunday; 
Life  Insurance;  Illegal  interest;  Selling  intoxicants  condemned;  Jewelry; 
Serving  on  Juries;  Law-suit;  Going  to  law;  Laying  on  of  hands  in  baptism; 
Lightning  rods;  Having  likenesses  (pictures)  taken;  The  Lord's  day;  Buy- 
ing lottery  tickets;  Attending  lyceums;  Marriage;  Military  service;  Mort- 
gages; Music  and  musical  instruments;  Mustache;  The  New  Testament 
our  rule;  Neckties;  Non-conformity  (to  the  world);  Oaths;  Civil  office; 
Organs  in  meeting  houses;  Paintings  in  houses;  Plays  at  parties;  Pianos; 
Plain  dressing;  The  Prayer  Covering;  Salaried  ministry;  Schools;  Secret 
societies;  Sleighbells;  Speculation;  Sunday  schools;  Tobacco;  Erecting 
tombstones;  Uniformity  in  dress;  Vain  conversation;  Universal  redemption; 
Going  to  war;  Young  Men's  Christian  Association." 

These  are  only  a  part  of  the  subjects  which  are  given  in  the  Index  and 
on  which  the  Annual  Meeting  has  given  decisions  binding  on  the  members 
of  the  Dunker  church.  In  almost  every  instance,  where  the  question  is  one 
that  related  to  conduct,  the  decision  is  negative  in  its  nature. 


216  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

that  there  are  just  four  theological  subjects, — the  order 
of  faith  and  repentance,  the  Gospel  a  perfect  law,  univer- 
sal redemption  and  the  annihilation  of  the  wicked.  The 
whole  trend  of  these  decisions  is  that  of  a  protest  against 
practices  that  are  held  to  be  wicked.  The  chief  reasons 
given  for  the  positions  are  that  such  practices  violate 
Scripture  or  some  tradition  that  has  been  handed  down, 
not  that  they  are  unreasonable,  or  evil  in  their  effects. 

Even  more  striking  are  a  few  quotations  from  the 
"Minutes"  themselves.  This  one  on  the  doctrine  of  the 
Scriptures  is  in  point.  "Art.  5,  1872. — Is  the  Gospel  a 
perfect  law  to  govern  the  church  in  all  things  necessary 
to  salvation?  Ans. — It  is."  Apologetic  necessities  have 
led  the  Dunkers  to  assert  that  the  Bible  is  a  divinely  in- 
spired book  and  that  obedience  is  the  test  of  love  and  faith. 

This  legalistic  conception  of  the  nature  of  Christianity 
has  determined  the  nature  of  almost  all  the  decisions  of 
the  Annual  Meeting.  Life  is  duty.  The  Gospel  is  a  law 
of  duty.  How  to  obey  this  law,  as  well  as  just  what  this 
law  is  in  its  essence,  has  been  the  crux  of  all  their 
troubles. 

Here  are  examples  of  their  deductive  reasoning:  "Art. 
19,  1876. — Is  it  right,  according  to  the  Gospel,  for  a 
brother  to  plead  the  laws  of  the  land,  and  act  as  an  attor- 
ney? Ans. — The  Brethren  have  always  considered  it 
not  according  to  the  Gospel  for  a  brother  to  practive  law 
and  act  as  an  attorney,  and  we  can  make  no  change  in 
this  respect". 

"Art.  7,  1869, — Can  a  brother,  consistently  with  the 
Gospel,  take  the  benefit  of  the  law  by  getting  up  a  peti- 
tion to  locate  a  ditch  according  to  law,  and  thus  compel 
others  bo  ditch?  Ans. — We  consider  it  most  in  accor- 
dance with  the  Gospel,  and  the  general  principles  of  the 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  217 

Brotherhood  not  to  use  the  law  to  compel  men  to  do  any- 
thing". 

"Art.  6,  1844.— Whether  it  be  allowable  for  brethren  to 
collect  debts  by  force  of  law.  It  was  again  considered 
that  no  brother  has  any  right,  in  the  Gospel,  to  sue  at 
law.     Lu.  3:14;  Mt.  5:38;  etc.,  6:12". 

"Art.  3,  1821. — How  far  Brethren  have  the  liberty  to 
commune  with  men  who  do  not  strictly  adhere  to  the  truth 
was  considered  in  council  thus:  That  it  is  very  danger- 
ous to  commune  with  such  people  as  do  not  hold  entirely 
to  the  doctrine  of  Christ,  since  the  Apostle  says,  'If  there 
come  any  unto  you,  and  bring  not  this  doctrine,  receive 
him  not  into  your  house,  neither  bid  him  God-speed'  (2 
John  10) ;  and  the  counsel  is,  to  give  them  no  liberty  to 
speak  in  our  meetings". 

"Art.  4,  1845. — In  regard  to  usury  and  increase,  it  was 
considered,  that  as  it  was  against  the  law  of  Moses,  and 
could  not  be  otherwise  than  against  the  Gospel  of  Christ, 
which  commands  us  'to  lend  where  we  hope  for  nothing 
again',  we  should  be  very  careful  not  to  ask  or  take  more 
than  lawful  interest,  and  keep  an  open  hand  for  the  poor, 
and  to  lend  them  even  without  interest". 

These  decisions  are  supposed  to  be  in  force  among  the 
Dunkers  at  the  present  time.  It  is  a  fact,  however,  that 
many  of  the  decisions  that  stand  in  the  "Revised  Min- 
utes" are  chiefly  effective  in  the  country  districts  and 
small  towns.  In  the  larger  cities  and  some  country  dis- 
tricts, where  the  isolation  of  the  Dunkers  is  giving  way 
to  an  unhindered  communication  with  the  other  social 
elements,  there  is  a  tendency  to  allow  some  of  the  more 
stringent  rulings  to  become  obsolete.  Moreover,  the 
Dunker  church  has  invented  a  way  of  rendering  some  of 
the  regulations  that  make  people  conspicuous  in  public, 
less  obnoxious  to  the  rank  and  file  of  the  membership. 


218  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

The  plan  is  to  have  such  regulations  apply  only  to  the 
official  members  of  the  church. 

Hence,  on  the  whole  the  Dunker  church  today  is  some- 
what further  advanced  in  the  development  of  the  social 
mind  than  the  Minutes  of  the  Annual  Meeting  would 
suggest.  The  dogmatic  type  of  mind  reached  its  climax 
among  them  about  1880.  Since  that  time  their  type  of 
mind  has  gradually  grown  more  critically  intellectual.  An 
evidence  of  this  is  the  fact  that  the  decisions  of  the  An- 
nual Meeting  since  about  that  time  have  gradually  be- 
come less  concerned  about  questions  of  casuistry,  and 
have  rather  been  directed  towards  completing  the  organ- 
ization, and  adapting  it  to  the  changed  conditions  of  a 
new  era  in  their  history.* 

*The  present  type  of  mind  prevailing  among  the  Dunkers  is  indicated 
better,  perhaps,  by  a  small  circular  sent  out  by  the  Gospel  Messenger,  the 
official  publication  of  the  church.    It  is  as  follows: 

"It  most  earnestly  pleads  for  a  return  to  the  apostolic  order  of  worship 
and  practice. 

It  holds  that  the  Bible  is  a  divinely-inspired  book,  and  recognizes  the 
New  Testament  as  the  only  infallible  rule  of  faith  and  practice  for  the  peo- 
ple of  God. 

It  also  holds  to  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity;  teaches  future  rewards  and 
punishment,  and  emphasizes  the  importance  of  a  pure,  holy  and  upright 
life  before  God  and  man. 

It  maintains  that  only  those  who  remain  faithful  until  death  have  the 
promise  of  eternal  life; 

That  Faith,  Repentance  and  Baptism  are  conditions  of  pardon,  and  hence 
for  the  remission  of  sins; 

That  Trine  Immersion  or  dipping  the  candidate  three  times  face-forward 
is  Christian  Baptism; 

That  Feet- Washing,  as  taught  in  John  13,  is  a  divine  command  to  be  ob- 
served in  the  church; 

That  the  Lord's  Supper  is  a  meal,  and,  in  connection  with  the  Commun- 
ion, should  be  taken  in  the  evening,  or  after  the  close  of  the  day; 

That  the  Salutation  of  the  Holy  Kiss,  or  Kiss  of  Charity,  is  binding  upon 
the  followers  of  Christ; 

That  War  and  Retaliation  are  contrary  to  the  spirit  and  self-denying 
principles  of  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ; 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  219 

The  Progressives  have  no  official  statement  of  their 
doctrines.  In  the  beginning  of  their  organization  they 
differed  from  the  Conservatives  only  on  matters  relating 
to  dress,  ways  of  wearing  the  hair  and  beard,  and  as  to 
the  church's  power  to  pronounce  authoritatively  on  ques- 
tions that  are  not  definitely  settled  by  the  Scriptures. 
They  held  that  where  the  Scriptures  do  not  plainly  teach 
a  certain  doctrine,  or  custom,  the  church  has  no  author- 
ity to  say  what  a  member  must  do.  The  Progressives 
were  expelled  because  they  refused  to  be  obedient  to  the 
church.  They  held  that  one  should  obey  the  church  only 
when  the  church  has  Gospel  grounds  for  its  positions, 
instead  of  the  traditions  of  the  Fathers,  backed  by  the 
authority  of  the  Annual  Meeting.*  Only  to  a  minor  de- 
gree was  the  progressive  movement  a  revolt  against 
the  dogmatic  type  of  mind.t 

That  a  Nonconformity  to  the  world  in  daily  walk,  dress,  customs  and  con- 
versation is  essential  to  true  holiness  and  Christian  piety. 

It  maintains  that  in  public  worship,  or  religious  exercises,  Christians 
should  appear  as  directed  in  1  Cor.  11:  4,  5. 

It  also  advocates  the  Scriptural  duty  of  Anointing  the  sick  with  oil  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord. 

In  short,  it  is  a  vindicator  of  all  that  Christ  and  the  apostles  have  en- 
joined upon  us,  and  aims,  amid  the  conflicting  theories  and  discords  of 
modern  Christendom,  to  point  out  ground  that  all  must  concede  to  be  in- 
fallibly safe." 

*See  "Declaration  of  Principles,"  of  the  Progressives,  inHolsinger,  "His- 
tory of  the  Tunkers,  etc."  p  530. 

fTheir  present  positions  are  given  in  a  small  tract  that  is  sent  out  by 
their  Publication  Board  at  Ashland,  Ohio  as  follows: 

"In  doctrine  the  Brethren  seek  unity  in  essentials  and  charity  in  all 
things,  Phil.  3:13-16. 

They  baptize  repentant,  (Acts  2:38,)  believers,  (Mk.  16:16,)  by  triune  im- 
mersion according  to  the  commission,  (Matt.  28:19;  Rom.  6:3  4;  Gal.  3:27,) 
and  confirm  them  by  the  laying  on  of  hands,  (Heb.  6:2;  Acts  19:6,)  the  sym- 
bols of  receiving  the  Spirit,  (1  John  2:27.) 

They  keep  the  communion  service,  called  the  love-feast,  (Jude  12,)  with 
feet-washing,  the  symbol  of  cleansing,  (John  13:1-17,)  the  supper  teaching 


220  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

In  theological  matters,  like  the  Conservatives,  the 
Progressives  have  all  shades  of  opinion.  They  are  very 
tolerant  in  such  matters,  as  they  have  never  been  a 
theological  church.  The  Dunkers  of  all  branches,  true 
to  their  origin,  in  German  Pietism,  have  always  been 
marked  by  their  emphasis  on  piety  rather  than  ortho- 
doxy. The  latter  is  a  word  that  is  rarely  found  in  the 
Dunker  vocabulary. 

The  theological  doctrines  held  by  the  Progressives,  as 
by  the  Conservatives,  are  the  result  of  tradition,  not  of 
reason.  Thus,  even  these  doctrines  show  the  same  gen- 
eral type  of  mind  which  characterizes  the  Conservatives. 
The  only  difference  is  that  the  Progressives  have  proba- 
bly a  few  more  men  that  are  thinking  for  themselves 
along  theological  lines  than  the  Conservatives.  But  in 
general  the  two  branches  are  characterized  by  the  same 
general  type  of  mind,  the  emotional-dogmatic,  with  a  grow- 
ing tendency  to  become  critically-intellectual,  and  with 
a  corresponding  tendency  towards  change  in  type  of 
character.  The  Progressives  are  only  slightly  in  advance 
of  the  Conservatives  in  these  matters,  at  the  present 
day,  owing  to  the  rapid  changes  that  have  been  going  on 
among  the  latter  since  the  division  in  1880-1882. 

3.    The  Social  Organization  of  the  Dunkers. 

The  origin  and  development  of  the  social  organization 
has  already  been  traced.  A  brief  sketch  of  the  present 
state  of  the  organization  is  all  that  is  necessary  here. 

brotherly  love  and  equity,  (1  Cor.  11:17-30,)  the  eucharis tic  emblems,  (Luke 
22:19,  20,)  and  kiss  of  love,  (Rom.  16:16.)  They  anoint  the  sick  with  oil,  (Jas. 
5:12.)  They  are  opposed  to  war,  (Isa.  2:4;  II  Cor.  10:4;  Jas.  4:1,  2,)  to  oaths, 
(Matt.  6:34;  Jas.  5:12;)  to  Brethren  going  to  law  with  Brethren,  (I  Cor.  6:5 
8,)  to  divorce,  (Matt.  5:32;  19:9,)  and  to  all  forms  of  worldliness  (John  17:15.) 
The  Brethren  consider  it  their  mission  to  give  to  the  world  an  example 
of  loving  and  complete  obedience  to  Christ  and  his  Gospel,  (John  8:31;  Rom. 
6:17.)    They  believe  in  primitive  doctrine,  purity  and  power." 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  221 

The  social  composition  of  the  Dunkers  has  been  de- 
termined by  their  type  of  aggregation  and  has  reacted 
upon  it.  They  have  always  been  a  prolific  people.  From 
their  large  families,  to  a  great  extent,  they  have  recruit- 
ed the  membership  of  the  church.  The  Dunker  family 
is  still  the  primary  source  of  their  membership.  However, 
as  they  become  like  the  environing  society  in  mind,  and 
as  the  society  about  them,  in  turn,  becomes  affected  with 
their  ideas  and  customs  by  imitation,  more  and  more  the 
social  composition  becomes  more  complex.  This  process 
is  now  going  on  in  most  parts  of  the  Dunker  church.  It 
is  going  on  most  rapidly  in  the  progressive  branch. 

In  their  early  history,  marriage  out  of  the  church  was 
punishable  by  expulsion.*  It  is  still  frowned  upon,  but 
the  process  of  liberalization  now  in  progress,  has  modified 
the  attitude  of  the  church.  In  some  congregations  fam- 
ilies intermarry  generation  after  generation.  The  degree 
of  kinship  is  not  so  close  that  any  evil  results  appear  in 
the  offspring,  but  four  or  five  families  may  intermarry 
for  a  long  time  without  being  closely  related.  For 
example,  I  know  of  three  families  in  a  congregation  in 
which  the  women  did  not  change  their  names,  when  they 
were  married;  yet  they  and  their  husbands  were  only 
very  distant  relatives. 

Occasionally,  however,  a  Dunker  marries  out  of  the 
congregation.  When  this  happens,  it  usually  follows 
that  the  non-Dunker  sooner  or  later  joins  the  Dunker 
church.  The  strong  social  life  of  the  Dunker  family  and 
community  is  so  attractive  that  people  who  come  in  con- 
tact with  them  are  often  brought  into  the  church,  and  thus 
new  blood  is  introduced.  For  example,  in  the  early  days 
in  Pennsylvania,  the  German  Dunkers  and  the  Scotch 
Irish  immigrants  mingled  in  the  same  regions,   and  in 

*"Chronicon  Ephratense  ",  p  96,  249  f .  iv ' 


2*2  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

many  instances,  Hhe  charms  of  the  Dunker  girls  were  too 
much  for  the  Presbyterian  principles  of  the  Irish 
young  men.)  Usually  these  men  joined  the  Dunker 
church.  This  resulted  in  many  Irish  and  Scotch  names 
being  found  among  the  Dunkers,  and  in  the  strange  phe- 
nomenon of  an  Irishman  speaking  Pennsylvania  Dutch 
as  fluently  as  any  German.  This  process  has  been  re- 
peating itself  since,  wherever  Dunker  communities  are 
found. 

In  this  complexity  of  social  composition  of  the  Dunker 
membership  in  certain  parts  of  the  country  lies  a  partial 
explanation  of  the  coercive  policy-  that  has  been  found 
necessary  in  their  social  organization,  and  the  later  lib- 
eralization of  mind  and  organization.  While  they  have 
always  been  largely  a  homogeneous  body,  there  has  al- 
ways been  just  enough  of  heterogeneity  both  of  ethnic 
elements  and  of  ideas  and  social  customs  to  compel  the 
leaders  to  formulate  a  policy  of  unification.  It  also  com- 
pelled the  formulation  of  distinctive  methods  of  cooper- 
ation, while  at  the  same  time,  it  has  developed  the  traits 
of  hospitality,  frugality  and  social  helpfulness  so 
characteristic  of  Dunker  history. 

The  Dunkers  are  a  voluntary,  cultural,  religious  asso- 
ciation. Their  constitution  is  based  formally  upon  a  like- 
ness of  belief,  but  ultimately  upon  a  wider  and  more  in- 
clusive basis, — the  consciousness  of«  likeness,  which  in- 
cludes, not  only  beliefs,  but  also  like  sympathies  in  re- 
gard to  matters,  aesthetic,  political  and  economic.  Their 
present  social  organization  is  simply  a  development  of 
the  single  congregation,  adapted  to  the  larger  problems 
produced  by  their  diffusion.  Except  that  the  number  of 
constituent  societies  in  the  church  has  greatly  increased, 
the  present  organization  does    not    differ  from  the  de- 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  MS 

scription  given  in  Chapter  IV,  for  it  was  at  that  time 
that  the  final  steps  were  taken. 

Of  the  two  lesser  bodies  of  Dunkers  the  smallest  is 
that  known  as  the  Seventh  Day  Baptists,  which  originated 
with  Beissel,  as  narrated  in  Chapter  I  of  Part  II.  The 
communities  of  this  branch  are  gradually  dying  out. 
Their  social  oaganization  has  never  been  perfected,  the 
congregations  still  being  without  organic  connection. 

The  next  larger  body  is  the  Old  Order  Brethren.  This 
also  is  decreasing  in  numbers  year  by  year.  Its  social 
organization,  however,  is  but  partially  developed,  as  it 
broke  away  from  the  main  body  in  1880  and  has  under- 
gone no  further  change.  It  represents  the  extremely  con- 
servative wing  of  the  church  on  matters  of  non-conformi- 
ty to  the  world.  It  is  the  reactionary  party  of  modern 
times  among  the  Dunkers,  as  Beissel's  party  was  the  re- 
actionary party  of  the  earlier  days.  The  Old  Order  Breth- 
ren have  hoped  to  stem  the  tide  of  development  that  they 
felt  was  carrying  the  church  away  from  the  ideals  and 
practices  of  the  days  of  isolation.  They  represent  the 
element  that  refused  to  be  socialized  either  by  the  pro- 
gressive element  in  the  church,  or  by  the  larger  social 
environment  outside.  They  have  an  Annual  Meeting, 
and  publish  a  paper  at  Brookville,  Ohio. 

The  social  organization  of  the  Progressives  differs  from 
that  of  the  Conservatives  only  upon  the  matters  upon 
which  the  grievances  arose  at  the  time  of  the  division. 
Three  points  only  represent  the  differences  between  the 
organization  of  the  two:  (1)  the  general  Conference  of  the 
Progressives  is  a  body  of  delegates  from  the  congre- 
gations of  the  denomination,  although  occasionally  a 
district,  too  far  from  the  place  of  meeting  for  its  congre- 
gations to  be  represented,  sends  a  delegate  as  a  repre- 
sentative at  large;  (2)  the  Conference  has  no  Standing 


m  THE  DTTNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

Committee.  It  has  an  Executive  Committee,  which  has 
charge  of  the  program  for  the  Conference.  This  differs 
from  the  Standing  Committee  in  that  it  does  not  decide 
what  matters  of  business  shall  come  before  the  Confer- 
ence, nor  does  it  appoint  committees  to  execute  the  de- 
cisions of  Conference:  (3)  the  decisions  of  the  General 
Conference  are  not  "mandatory";  it  is  a  body  solely  for 
conference,  and  for  the  management  of  the  various  in- 
stitutions of  the  church. 

The  social  constitution  of  the  Progressives  is  quite 
highly  developed.  It  owns  its  own  publishing  house,  at 
Ashland,  Ohio,  and  its  college  and  seminary,  which  are 
located  at  the  same  place.  It  has  its  organized  General 
and  Foreign  Mission  Boards,  its  young  people's  and  its 
women's  societies.  Its  local  congregations  are  also 
made  up  of  several  constituent  societies  for  the  division 
of  social  labor  of  the  congregation. 

Thus,  in  both  of  the  leading  branches  of  the  Dunker 
church  there  is  a  developed  organization.  The  spirit 
of  these  organizations  is  slowly  becoming  more  liberal, 
the  idea  that  the  individual  exists  for  the  church  is  grad- 
ually being  displaced  by  the  conception  that  the  church 
exists  for  the  welfare  of  the  individual.  The  policy  of 
coercion  is  gradually  giving  way  to  the  policy  of  liberal- 
ism. The  ease  with  which  constituent  societies  are  or- 
ganized in  the  two  branches  of  the  Dunker  church  at 
large  and  in  the  local  congregations  is  increasing  con- 
stantly. Ever  more  dominant  is  becoming  the  idea  that 
the  only  reason  for  the  existence  of  the  church  is  its  abil- 
ity and  pur  pose  to  contribute  to  the  welfare  of  men;  first, 
by  contributing  to  the  welfare  of  the  individual  member 
of  the  denomination;  secondly,  by  contributing  to  the 
welfare  of  society  at  large  by  the  kind  of  men  it  is  able 


PRESENT  CONDITIONS  2S5 

to  make  of  its  members  and  send  out  into  the  larger  so- 
ciety, the  nation  and  the  world. 

Starting  with  eight  members  in  1708,  the  Dunkers, 
Conservatives  and  Progressives,  today  number  more 
than  one  hundred  thousand  members.  They  are  just  be- 
ginning their  career  as  missionizers.  Hitherto  they  have 
developed  largely  by  pushing  out  from  their  centres  of 
population  to  the  contiguous  parts,  and  mainly  by  genetic 
aggregation.  Today  they  are  planting  missions  in  the 
great  cities  of  America,  and  in  foreign  lands. 

Their  social  mind  has  undergone  a  very  great  change 
in  the  last  twenty  five  years,  resulting  in  changes  in  their 
doctrines  and  practices.  Gradually  they  are  dropping 
the  peculiarities  that  interfere  with  the  complete  ex- 
pression of  their  main  purpose  of  making  people  "good." 
Education  has  been  accepted  by  them,  and  is  no 
longer  frowned  upon  as  "worldly".  Their  religion  as  an 
ethical  force  will  produce  men,  let  us  hope,  who,  dropping 
the  narrowness  of  the  old  views,  forsaking  the  isolation 
of  the  past,  and  taking  on  the  polish,  the  culture,  the 
wideness  of  vision  and  the  aggressiveness  of  the  great 
world  which  they  have  shunned  so  long,  will  be  of  social 
value  in  the  world  into  which  they  go.  The  church  has 
shut  the  riches  of  the  "world"  out  from  itself  too  long, 
and  it  has  withheld  from  the  world  the  virile  forces  of 
its  own  forceful,  rugged  moral  life.  If  the  Dunker  can 
adopt  the  best  that  the  "world"  has  to  give  him,  and  yet 
keep  the  solid  strength,  and  the  deep  moral  earnestness 
of  his  past  history,  his  individual  personality  will  be  none 
the  poorer,  and  society  at  large  will  be  much  the  richer. 
His  great  contribution  to  the  social  life,  of  which  his 
church  is  but  a  part,  is  yet  to  be  made. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


Conclusion. 

Of  the  psychological  conception  of  society  there  are 
four  types: — the  "social-contract"  theory,  the  "impres- 
sion" theory  of  Le  Bon  and  Durkheim,  the  "imitation" 
theory  of  the  late  Gabriel  Tarde,  and  the  modified  "in- 
stinct" theory  of  Professor  F.  H.  Giddings. 

The  "social-contract"  theory  describes  the  last  step  in 
the  organization  of  the  Dunker  church.  When  the  orig- 
inal eight  members  had  gone  that  far  in  the  matter,  they 
"consented  together  to  enter  into  a  covenant  of  a  good 
conscience  with  God".*  There  were,  however,  a  number 
of  previous  steps  for  which  this  theory  does  not  account. 
It  does  not  explain,  for  instance,  why  only  these  eight 
persons  saw  the  advantages  to  be  gained  from  association 
and  were  thus  led,  according  to  this  theory,  to  form  an 
association,  or  society. 

The  "impression"  theory  plays  a  very  small  part,  if 
any,  in  the  history  of  the  Dunker s  in  this  period.  They 
were  always  the  small  party  and  the  mass  had  but  little 
influence  in  the  decision  of  anyone  to  unite  with  them. 
It  might  explain  why  some  people  did  not  unite  with 
them,  but  that  is  not  the  side  of  the  matter  that  requires 
explanation  in  interpreting  the  origin  and  history  of  the 
Dunkers. 

For  the  imitation  theory  more  can  be  said.  In  the  first 
two  chapters  attention  was  called  to  the  fact  that  some  of 
the  events  in  the  origin  and  development  of  the  Dunkers 
might  be  explained  by  the  historical  influence  of  other 
sects.  However,  two  things  are  to  be  noticed  in  this 
connection,  (1)  that  this  theory  of  historical  dependence, 

*"A  Plain  View,  etc."  p  ix. 


CONCLUSION  227 

or  of  imitation,  does  not  account  for  all  the  events  and 
doctrines,  and  (2)  that  this  theory  does  not  answer  the 
further  question  as  to  why  the  historical  precedent  had 
an  influence.  It  is  a  fact  that  many  such  precedents  had 
no  influence  on  Mack.  For  example,  many  of  the  rites 
and  doctrines  of  the  orthodox  churches  and  of  the  sects 
had  no  influence  upon  the  Dunkers.  Some  other  theory 
than  that' of  imitation  must  be  invoked  to  explain  these 
facts.  It  is  not  denied,  however,  that  imitation  has 
played  a  very  important  part  in  the  history  of  the  Dun- 
ker  people,  but  imitation  is  not  the  fundamental  principle 
explaining  the  movement.  It  leaves  unanswered  the 
questions  as  to  why  one  precedent  and  not  another  is 
imitated,  and  why  imitation  begins. 

The  inadequacy  of  the  other  theories  to  account  for 
the  Dunker  history,  leaves  us  the  modified  "instinct" 
theory  of  Professor  Giddings.  Its  starting  point  is  that 
the  mental  activity  that  produces  society  is  the  response 
of  sensitive  matter  to  a  stimulus.  In  the  like  response 
of  people  to  the  same  given  stimulus  we  find  the  origin 
of  all  concerted  activity,  and  in  the  unlike  and  unequal 
response  is  the  origin  of  the  processes  of  differentiation, 
which  in  their  relations  to  the  concerted  activity  give 
rise  to  the  complex  phenomena  of  organized  society.* 
This  theory  has  the  advantage  that  it  answers  the  ques- 
tions left  unanswered  by  the  others.  There  is  contract, 
conflict  and  imitation  in  every  society,  but  the  reason 
these  processes  exist  is  because  in  the  ceaseless  equilib- 
ration of  energy  between  bodies  unequally  charged  with 
energy  some  respond  in  a  similar  mannner,  to  the  stimuli 
of  their  environment,  while  others  respond  in  an  unlike 
manner.     With  this  fundamental  formula,   this    theory 

*See  Giddings,  "Concepts  and  Methods  of  Sociology",  American  Journal 
of  Sociology,  Vol.  X,  No.  2,  Sept.  1904,  p  164  f. 


228  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

proceeds  to  explain  under  what  conditions  of  environment 
like  response  is  possible,  and  under  what  conditions  im- 
possible. The  significant  feature  is  the  relation  of  the 
physical  environment  to  the  composition  of  the  population. 
That  is  to  say,  the  character  of  the  physical  environment 
determines  whether  the  population  of  a  country  shall  be 
homogeneous  or  not,  while  the  character  of  the  population 
determines  its  type  of  mind,  character  and  disposition,  its 
ideals,  its  ability  to  unite  in  concerted  action  and  its  social 
organization.*  It  is  recognized  in  this  theory  that  the  re- 
sponse of  individuals  that  gives  us  a  society  is  a  response 
to  two  kinds  of  stimuli, — (1)  the  stimuli  of  the  material  en- 
vironment, and  (2)  the  stimuli  of  the  historical  environment. 
The  latter  are  of  the  greatest  importance  in  their  direct 
action  upon  the  formation  and  history  of  a  society.  This 
theor}^  we  have  tried,  in  this  paper,  to  apply  to  the  his- 
ory  of  the  Dunkers. 

This  theory  explains  the  origin  of  the  Dunkers.  In 
Part  I  it  was  shown  that  Dunker  doctrines,  customs  and 
organization  originated  in  a  country  whose  physical  char- 
acteristics were  such  that  different  kinds  of  people  settled 
within  its  borders,  which  physical  characteristics,  how- 
ever, retarded  the  natural  processes  of  socialization.  The 
nature  of  the  country  was  such  that  it  attracted  immi- 
grants because  of  its  economic  opportunities,  and  its  nat- 
ural position  as  a  highway  over  which  people  naturally 
traveled,  while  its  social  advantages  were  such  as  to  at- 
tract the  separatists  persecuted  in  other  parts  of  Europe. 
This  made  the  demotic  composition  very  complex,  and 
furnished  the  conditions  necessary  for  social  development. 
The  composite  nature  of  the  population  determined  the 
rise  of  a  consciousness  of  unlikeness  between  the  differ- 

*©iddings,  "A  Theory  of  Social  Causation",  Publications  of  the  Amer- 
ican Economic  Association,  Third  Series,  vol.  V,  No.  2. 


CONCLUSION  229 

ing  elements,  and  set  up  the  processes  of  socialization 
known  as  conflict,  toleration  and  imitation.  The  further 
development  of  consciousness  of  likeness  within  the  nar- 
row confines  of  Wittgenstein  resulted  in  the  emergence 
of  ideals,  of  doctrines,  customs  and  organization.  The 
origin  of  the  Dunker  movement,  therefore,  is  to  be  ex- 
plained by  the  generalization  that  the  environment  deter- 
mined the  social  composition,  while  upon  the  social  com- 
position depended  the  consciousness  of  kind  that  led  to 
the  social  development. 

The  consciousness  of  kind,  therefore,  is  the  fundament- 
al social  fact  that  explains  why  the  Dunker s  imitated  cer- 
tain historical  precedents  and  neglected  others.  Con- 
sciousness of  likeness  to  the  primitive  Christians  caused 
the  Dunkers  to  go  back  to  the  New  Testament,  as  inter- 
preted by  the  primitive  church,  for  their  models  of  life, 
doctrine,  custom  and  organization,  when  their  conscious- 
ness of  unlikeness  to  the  people  composing  the  member- 
ship of  the  state  churches  had  caused  the  necessity  of 
having  a  different  life,  doctrines,  customs  and  organiza- 
tion to  be  felt  by  them.  In  every  case,  where  they  imi- 
tated historical  precedents,  they  did  so,  because  they  felt 
that  they  were  more  like  those  whom  they  imitated  than 
like  those  whom  they  refused  to  imitate.  This,  then,  is 
our  explanation  of  the  sequence  of  events  that  led  up  to 
the  origin  of  the  Dunkers.  Why  did  the  Dunkers  origi- 
nate at  all?  Because  certain  elements  in  the  community, 
conscious  of  a  general  likeness  to  the  Pietists  felt  also 
their  unlikeness  to  the  latter  on  the  point  of  the  necess- 
ity of  separation  from  the  state  churches,  and  of  discipline 
to  make  separation  possible.  Why  did  they  feel  this  un- 
likeness? Because  the  social  composition  of  the  Pietistic 
groups  as  a  whole  lacked  perfect  homogeneity,  and  this, 
because  in  their  evolution  they  had   inherited  different 


230  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

tendencies,  and  had  been  subjected  to  slightly  different 
environmental  conditions.  They  had  lived  in  different 
districts,  read  different  books,  had  occupied  unlike  posi- 
tions in  life,  and  had  had  unlike  experiences. 

After  the  Dunker  ideals  had  once  arisen  and  had  got 
themselves  incarnated  in  the  persons  of  the  first  eight 
members,  a  new  social  stimulus  had  come  into  existence 
for  those  about  them  that  were  not  yet  members  of  their 
organization.  This  was  a  secondary  stimulus,  an  ideal. 
To  it  men  responded  according  to  the  completeness  of 
their  mental  and  moral  likeness  to  the  Dunker  type.  If 
they  were  conscious  of  their  likeness  to  the  Dunkers, 
they  united  with  the  latter.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  they 
were  conscious  of  being  unlike  the  Dunkers,  they  not  only 
remained  outside  the  Dunker  organization,  but  became  ani- 
mated with  a  hostility  to  it  and  its  members.  In  either 
case  the  decision  tended  to  confirm  people  in  their  atti- 
tude. Thus,  differentiation  became  greater  and  finally 
permanent.  The  removal  to  America  and  consequent  de- 
cay of  the  sect  in  Europe  was  due  to  the  lack  of  assimila- 
tion in  the  districts  where  the  Dunker  congregations  were 
located.  The  decay  of  the  congregation  at  Crefeld  was 
due  to  lack  of  social  assimilation  of  the  elements  that 
composed  it;  that  at  Schwarzenau  to  the  introduction  of 
social  heterogeneity  into  the  population  of  Wittgenstein. 

The  origin  of  the  sect  in  America  was  due,  as  we  saw, 
to  a  greater  complexity  of  causes.  It  began  with  a  con- 
sciousness of  unlikeness  to  the  elements  of  the  social 
population  at  Germantown,  made  apparent  by  the  close 
contact  of  the  Dunkers  with  the  other  elements  located 
there.  It  was  complicated,  however,  by  the  fact  that 
Becker  and  many  of  his  fellow  settlers  had  been  Dunkers 
in  Germany,   and  therefore  imitated  the  Dunkers  there, 


CONCLUSION  SSI 

when  the  social  situation  at  Germantown  had  suggested 
the  need  of  a  new  social  organization. 

Consciousness  of  kind  determined  the  course  of  the 
early  history  in  America.  The  character  of  the  country 
about  Philadelphia  had  made  very  complex  the  social  pop- 
ulation settled  there.  The  environments  of  Germantown 
and  Conestoga  were  different  and  had  much  to  do  with 
the  different  ideals  of  Beissel  and  Becker.  The  resulting 
differences  of  ideals  made  the  two  parties  •  recognize 
their  unlikenesses,  and  finally  determined  their  perma- 
nent separation.  Lack  of  communication  and  association 
had  meanwhile  hindered  the  process  of  socialization. 

It  was  noticed  how  the  economic  opportunities  of  new 
regions  together  with  consciousness  of  kind  account  for 
the  expansion  of  the  Dunkers  and  its  direction. 

This  expansion  stopped  the  process  of  socialization 
that  had  just  began,  and  lack  of  communication  between 
the  different  congregations  gave  rise  to  variations  in 
Dunker  doctrines,  customs,  and  forms  of  organization. 

With  the  growth  of  the  country  industrially,  with  the 
increase  of  means  of  communication,  there  arose  a  con- 
sciousness of  these  variations,  and  a  desire  in  some 
Dunker  minds  to  remove  them.  This  gave  rise  to  the 
ideal  of  uniformity.  In  the  effort  to  realize  that  ideal 
there  originated  the  great  development  in  doctrine  and 
organization  that  characterized  the  history  of  the  Dunker 
church  from  1835  to  1880-1882.  It  also  gave  rise  to 
the  policy  of  coercion  in  regard  to  the  individual,  that 
we  saw  in  the  same  period.  This  process  of  unification, 
or  centralization,  reached  its  zenith  in  1882. 

It  was  observed,  furthermore,  that  with  the  develop- 
ment of  means  of  communication  and  association  there 
set  in  another  tendency.  The  great  environing  society 
began  to  make  itself  felt  upon  the  social  life  of  the  Dun- 


232  THE  DUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

kers.  The  larger  socializing  process  had  begun.  There 
began  to  develop  a  consciousness  of  kind  between  the 
Dunkers  and  the  other  social  elements  about  them.  This 
gave  rise  to  the  liberalization  of  the  Dunker  church. 

In  every  step  of  this  development  we  have  noticed  the 
causes.  The  whole  movement  was  conditioned  by  the 
physical  nature  of  the  country.  The  fundamental  social 
fact  in  the  origin  and  development  of  the  Dunkers  was  a 
consciousness  of  kind.  That  had  been  determined  by 
the  physical  character  of  the  country  along  the  Rhine  in 
Germany,  which  had  allowed  various  elements  to  congre- 
gate there.  Likewise,  in  America  that  which  developed 
the  consciousness  among  the  Dunkers  that  they  were 
more  alike  than  they  were  like  the  other  elements  of  the 
population  here,  was  the  fact  that  the  country  was  of 
such  a  nature  that  it  attracted  many  kinds  of  people  from 
different  nations  and  regions.  This  was  repeated,  when 
the  Dunkers  spread  out  over  what  is  now  the  United 
States.  On  ^the  other  hand,  the  physical  nature  of  the 
United  States  was  such  that  the  elements  that  congre- 
gated here  in  its  early  history,  possessed  potential  re- 
semblance. That  fact  determined  that  American  society 
should  be  progressive,  one  in  which  the  various  elements 
should  gradually  be  socialized.  The  socialization  is 
simply  a  part  of  that  great  process  that  is  still  in 
progress. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 


Acrelius,  <  'History  of  New  Sweden".  (Valuable  for  the  light  it 
throws  upon  the  situation  in  early  Pennsylvania  and  New 
Jersey,  and  especially  for  its  account  of  his  visit  to  Beissel 
at  Ephrata.) 

John  Arndt,  "True  Chrisnianity".  (Throws  light  on  the  ideas 
prevalent  among  certain  sectarians  of  Germany). 

Gottfried  Arnold,  "Unpartaische  Kirchen — und   Ketzer   His- 
torien,  etc." 
"  "         "Die  Erste  Liebe". 

(Both  are  valuable  as  sources  of  information  about  the 
parties  and  beliefs  current  among  them  in  Germany  at  the 
time  of  the  origin  of  the  Dunkers). 

T.  C.  Banfield,  "Industry  on  the  Rhine, — Agriculture-'.  Lon- 
don, 184:6. 

Robert  Barclay,  "Apology  for  the  Quakers". 

"       "       "A  Catechism  and  Confession  of  Faith". 
"       "       "Religious  Societies  of  the  Commonwealth". 

B.  Bauer,    "Der  Einfluss  des  Englischen  Quakerthum  auf  die 

deutsche   Cultur,  u.  s.  w." 

William  Bauer,  '  'Religious  Life  in  Germany  during  the  Wars 
of  Indepedence" . 

Samuel  Bownas,  "An  Account  of  the  Life,  Travels  and  Christ- 
ian Experiences  in  the  Work  of  the  Ministry  of  Samuel 
Bownas". 

M.  G.  Brumbaugh,  "History  of  the  Brethren". 

A.  Brons,  '  'Ursprung,  Entwickelung  und  Shicksale  der  Taufges- 
innten,  oder  Mennonites,  etc." 

T.  F.  Chambers,  "Early  Germans  of  New  Jersey". 

S.  H.  Cobb,  "Story  of  the  Palatines". 

"         "         "Palatine  or  German  Immigration  to  New  York 
and  Pennsylvania". 

C.  A.  Cornelius,  "Die  Niederlandischen  Widertaeufer,  u.  s,  w." 

«  "        "Geschichte  des  Muensterischen  Aufruhrs,    Part 

II,  "Die  Widertaufe". 


234  THE  D  UNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

Danker  and  Schluytbr,  "Journal".  (Translated  by  H.  C.  Mur- 
hpy  in  Vol.  I  of  the  Memoirs  or  the  Long  Island  Historical 
Society.  Valuable  for  the  light  it  throws  upon  the  customs 
and  habits  of  the  people  of  America,  especially  for  the  Laba- 
dists  of  Maryland). 

John  Dickinson,  <  'Letters  from  a  Farmer  in  Pennsylvania  to  the 
Inhabitants  of  the  British  Colonies. ' '  (Valuable  for  the 
insight  it  affords  into  the  thoughts  and  customs  of  the  com- 
mon people  of  Pennsylvania  at  an  early  day). 

F.  Dibelius,  "Gottfried  Arnold,  sein  Leben  und  seine  Bedeutung 
fur  Kirche  und  Theologie". 

F.  K.  Diffenderfer,    "The  Palatine  and  Quaker  as  Common- 
wealth Builders". 
"  <  <  "The  German  Exodus  to  England  in  1709. " 

(Pennsylvania  German  Society  Proceedings,  vol. 
17.) 
"  "     "German  Immigration  into  Pennsylvania". 

Jos.  H.  Dubbs,  "Founding  of  the  German  Churches  of  Penn- 
sylvania" (Pennsylvania  Magazine  of  Biography  and  His- 
tory, vol.  17.  ) 

Morgan  Edwards,  <  'Materials  towards  a  History  of  the  Baptists 
in  America".  (Very  important  for  a  knowledge  of  the 
early  Dunker  congregations  in  America). 

Fisher,  "The  Making  of  Pennsylvania;  an  Analysis  of  the  Ele- 
ments of  its  Population" . 

John  Fiske,  "Dutch  and  Quaker  Colonies  in  America". 
li         "         "Old  Virginia  and  her  Neighbors". 

George  Fox,  '  'Journal' ' . 

K.  F.  Geiser,  "Redemptioners  and  Indented  Servants,  etc." 

P.  E.  Gibbons,  "Pennsylvania  Dutch,  and  other  Essays", 

Max  Goebel,  "Die  Geschichte  des  Christlichen  Lebens  in  der 
rhenisch-westphaelischen,  evangelischen  Kirehe".  (Very 
valuable  for  a  knowledge  of  religious  conditions  in  the 
Rhine  valley  in  the  period  in  which  the  Dunkers  originated). 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  $35 

J.  I.  Good,  "History  of  the  Reformed  Church  in  Germany, 
1620—1890". 

"Historiseh — Topographisch — Statistiche  Beschreibung  der  Stadt 
Gersheim".  (No  author  given;  In  Union  Theological  Sem- 
inary Library,  New  York  City). 

"German  American  Annals",  vol.  1 — 12.  (Published  by  the 
German  American  Society,  Philadelphia,  Penna). 

L.  Haeusser,  uGeschichte  der  rhenischen  Pfalz."  (Very  valu- 
able). 

"Hallische  Nachrichten,  etc.,  1787".  (These  are  reports  of  the 
United  Evangelical  Churches  in  Pennsylvania  at  that  time, 
and  are  very  valuable). 

Henderson,  "A  Short  History  of  Germany",  2  vols. 

A.  Harnack,  "History  of  Dogma",  vol.  7. 

C.  R.  Hildeburn,  '  'Issues  of  the  Press  in  Pennsylvania,  1685 — 

1784".    2    vols.    (Very   valuable   for   a   knowledge  of  the 

sources  for  the  American  period). 
H.  R.  Holsinger,  "History  of  the  Tunkere  and  of  the  Brethren 

Church".      (Very  important  for  the  divisions  in  the  Dunker 

church  in  its  later  history). 
O.  Kuhns,  '  'German  and  Swiss  Settlements  of  Colonial  Pennsyl-    \j 

vania".     (One  of  the  best  small  books  on  these  settlements). 
Karl  Lamprecht,  "Deutsche  Geschichte",  7  vols. 
<  'List  of  Works  relating  to  the   Germans  in  the  United  States  in 

the  Library  of  Congress".     Compiled  by  A.  P.  C.   Griffen, 

Chief  Bibliographer,  Washington. 

D.  Miller,    "Pennsylvania   German".     (A   collection  of  Prose 

and  Poetry  in  the  dialect). 
Menno  Stmons,  "Opera  Omnia  Theologica".    Amsterdam:  1681. 

(In  Dutch). 
"Gottlieb  Mittelberger's  Journey  to  Pennsylvania  in  the  year 

1750,    and   Return   to  Germany  in  the  Year  1754,  etc.", 

translated  by  Eben,  Philadelphia,  1898. 


286  THE  D  UNEERS  IN  AMERICA 

A.  C.  Myers,  '  'Immigration  of  the  Irish  Quakers  into  Pennsyl- 

vania, 1682—1750". 
S.  B.  O'Callaghan,  "Documentary  History  of  New  York". 
Oncken,    "Allgemeine    Geschichte:  Zeitaiter    des  Friedrichs  d. 

Grossen". 
F.  D.  Pastorius,  <  <A  Particular  Geographical  Description  of  the 
Lately  Discovered  Province  of  Pennsylvania".    (Memoirs  of 
the  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania,  vol.  4,  Prt.  2,  1850.) 
"Penn's  and  Logan's  Correspondence".    (Ibid,  vols.  9,  10.) 
Penn,  "Select  Works".  3  vols. 
Penn,  "Works".  2  vols. 

"Pennsylvania,    the   German   Influence   in    its    Settlement   and 
Development.     Prepared  by  the  authority  of  the  Penmsyl- 
vania  German  Society".  2  vols. 
S.  W.  Pennypacker,  "The  Pennsylvania  Dutchman,  and  wherein 
he  excelled". 
"  "       "The  Settlement  of  Germantown". 

"  "        "Johann  Gottfried  Seelig,    and  the   Hymn  Book 

of  the  Hermits  of  the  Wissahickon'  \     (In  Pennsyl- 
vania Magazine  of  History  and  Biography.  Also 
printed  separately). 
"  "       "Historical   and   Biographical   Sketches".      (All 

of  these  are  of  considerable  importance). 
I.  D.  Rupp,  "History  of  Lancaster  County''. 

"       "  "He  Pasa  Ecclesia.     An  Original  History  of  the 

Religious  Denominations  existing  at  present  in  the 
United  States".     Philadelphia:  1844. 
"       "  "Early  History  of  Pennsylvania,  etc." 

B.  Rush,  "Historical  Notes  of  Dr.  B.   Rush,    1777",   edited   by 

Dr-  S.  Weir  Mitchell.     (Also  to  be  found  in  Penna.  Mag. 

History  and  Biog.,  April,  1903). 
J.  F.   Saohse,  "The  Fatherland,  1450 — 1700,  showing  the  part 
it  bore  in  the  discovery,  exploration  and  development,    etc.,   of 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  237 

Pennsylvania".      (In  Pennsylvania  German  Society  Proceedings 

and  Addresses,  vol.  7), 
Alvin  Schultz,  "Das  haeusliche  Leben  der  europaeischen  Kul- 
turvoelker,  von  Mittelalter  bis  zur  zweiten  Haelfte   des    18 
Jahrhunderts".     (Valuable   on   the   details   of    dress    and 
other  customs  in  the  period  of  the  origin  of  the  Dunkers). 
O.    Seidbnsticher,  "The  First  Century  of  German  Printing  in 
America,  1723—1830". 
"         "       "Germans  in  Pennsylvania". 
u         "        "Bilder  aus  der  deutsch-Pennsylvanischen    Ges- 

chichte,  etc". 

"         "       "Die    Erste  Einwanderung  in  America  und   die 

Grundung  von  Germantown  im  Jahre  1683,  etc." 

;<         "       "Ephrata:  eine  Amer.  Klostergeschiehte".     (All 

these  by  Seidensticher  are  of  great  value). 

Wm.  Sewell,    "History  of  the  Rise  and  Progress  of  the  People 

called  Quakers". 
C.  G.  Sower,  "Bishop  Christopher  Sower  of  Germantown". 
P.  J.  Spener,  "Werke". 

Robert  Todd,    "Robert  Hunter  and  the  Settlement  of  the  Pala- 
tines".     (In   the   Memorial  History  of  the  City  of    New 
York,  vol.  2,  chapter  4). 
J.  W.  Wayland,    "The  Germans  of  the  Valley".     (In   the  Vir- 
ginia Magazine  of  History  and  Biography,  vol.  9). 
H.  F.  Wakeman,  "Europe  from  1598—1715". 

Special  Sources. 

Besides  the  above  of  more  general  interest  to  the  student  of 
Dunker  history,  the  following  books  and  periodicals  are  of 
special  value,  and  have  been  used  largely  in  the  preparation  of 
the  dissertation. 

A.  Mack,  <  'A  Plain  View  of  the  Rites  and  Ordinances  of  the 
House  of  God,  arranged  in  the  form  of  a  Conversation  be- 
tween  a   Father   and   Son,    to    which  are  added    Ground- 


238  THE  BUNKERS  IN  AMERICA 

Searching  Questions,  answered  by  the  Author". 

(A  translation  of  "Kurz  und  Einfaeltige  Vorstellung  der 

aeussern  aber  doch  heiligen   Rechten  und   Ordnungen   des 

Hauses  Gottes,  u.  s.  w.",  a  copy  of  which  is  to  be  found  in 

the   Library   of   the    Historical    Society    of   Pennsylvania. 

This  is  quite  a  good  translation.      It  is  published   by    the 

Brethren  Publishing  Co.,  Elgin,  111.) 
Christopher  Sauer,  "Almanacs". 

"  "        "Sendschreiber". 

"  "        "Geistliche  Magazin".       (Some     numbers 

missing).     (All  of  these  are  to  be  found  in   the  Library  of 

thePenna.  His.  Soc.) 
Conrad  Beissel,  "Zeugnisse". 

u  "  "Mystische  und  Erfahrungs-volle  Episteln". 

(Both   of   these   are    bound   in  one  volume,   now  in  the 

Library  of  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York). 
Brothers    Lamech     and    Agrippa,     "Chronicon     Ephratense", 

translated  into  English  by  Dr.  Max  Hark. 
George  Adam  Martin,    "Christliche  Bibliothek".     (In  Penna. 

His.  Soc.  Library). 
VanBraght,  "Der  BluetigeSchau-Platz",  or,  Rupp's  translation, 

"The  Bloody  Mirror". 
"The   Berleberg   Bible",    edited   by   Mack  and  Hochman,   and 

other  Pietists. 
"The  Classified  Minutes  of  the  Annual  Meeting". 
"The  Revised  Minutes  of  the  Annual  Meeting". 
"Geistliche  Fama".  (A  periodical  in  the  Library  of  the  Historical 

Society  of  Pennsylvania. ") 
"Minutes   and  Letters  of  the  Coetus  of  Pennsylvania,    1734 — 

1792". 
Files  of  the  Gospel  Messenger,   Progressive    Christian,  Brethren 

Evangelist,    Brethren   Family    Almanac,     The    Brethren 

Annual,    and   some   minor    publications    of    the  different 

branches  of  the  church. 


VITA. 

The  writer  was  bom  Oct.  12,  1871  in  Black  Hawk  County,  Iowa. 
He  attended  the  public  schools  there  and  in  Linn  county  Iowa. 
After  a  year  in  the  preparatory  department  of  Upper  Iowa 
University,  at  Fayette,  he  taught  school,  and  subsequently 
entered  the  College  at  Upper  Iowa  University,  from  which  he 
received  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Literature.  He  then  went  to 
Iowa  College  at  Grinnell,  Iowa,  where  he  received  the  degree  of 
Bachelor  of  Arts.  He  then  served  as  pastor  of  the  Brethren 
Church  at  Waterloo,  Iowa  for  six  years.  In  1903  he  received 
the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  in  Columbia  University,  his  thesis 
being  on  "The  Pennsylvania  Dutch  Settlement  of  Orange  Town- 
ship, Black  Hawk  County,  Iowa,  a  Paper  in  Descriptive  Socio- 
logy". In  1904  h©  received  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Divinity 
in  the  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York,  his  thesis  being 
on,  "A  Critical  Comparison  of  the  Creeds  of  the  Ancient  Church 
Orders".  In  1904  he  was  awarded  the  "Hitchcock  Prize  in 
Church  History"in  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below, 
or  on  the  date  to  which  renewed.  Renewals  only: 

Tel.  No.  642-3405 
Renewals  may  be  made  4  days  prior  to  date  due. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 

IRVINE 


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